Uganda–Tanzania Crude Oil Pipeline
The Uganda–Tanzania Crude Oil Pipeline, also known as the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, is under construction and intended to transport crude oil from Uganda's oil fields to the Port of Tanga, Tanzania on the Indian Ocean. Once completed, the pipepline will be the longest heated crude oil pipeline in the world.
Location
The oil pipeline will start in Buseruka sub-county, Hoima District, in Uganda's Western Region. It will travel in a general south-easterly direction to pass through Masaka in Uganda, Bukoba in Tanzania, loop around the southern shores of Lake Victoria, continue through Shinyanga and Singida, to end in Tanga, a distance of approximately.Background
Uganda has proven oil reserves exceeding 6.5 billion barrels, of which about 2.2 billion barrels are recoverable. The country plans to build a refinery in the Western Region to meet local and regional demand, with the rest exported via pipeline to the Indian Ocean coast.Uganda previously agreed to build a joint Uganda–Kenya Crude Oil Pipeline to the Kenyan port of Lamu.
Concerns regarding security and cost, however, motivated parallel negotiations with Tanzania regarding a shorter and safer route to Port Tanga, with the support of the French petroleum conglomerate Total SA.
At the 13th Heads of State Summit in Kampala in April 2016, Uganda officially chose the Tanzania route for its crude oil, in preference to the Mombasa or Lamu routes in Kenya. The presidents of both Kenya and Rwanda were present, along with representatives from Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Tanzania. At the same summit, President Uhuru Kenyatta announced that Kenya would build the Kenya Crude Oil Pipeline on its own, thereby abandoning the Uganda–Kenya Crude Oil Pipeline.
The construction budget for the pipeline is US$3.5 billion. The pipeline is planned to have a capacity of 216,000 barrels of crude oil per day. It will be in diameter, and Uganda will pay Tanzania US$12.20 for every barrel flowing through the pipeline.
Cost, funding, and timetable
Construction originally was planned to start in August 2016 and last three years at a budgeted cost of US$4 billion, providing approximately 15,000 construction jobs and 1,000 to 2,000 permanent jobs. In March 2016, the Daily Monitor newspaper reported that Total E&P was prepared to spend US$4 billion to fund construction of this pipeline. Following meetings between delegations led by the oil ministers of Tanzania and Uganda, held in Hoima in July 2016, it was announced that construction of the pipeline would begin in January 2017. Completion is planned for 2020.Ownership
As of August 2017, the list of potential equity partners included several stakeholders as outlined in the table below:Negotiations and the search for international lenders are ongoing. Uganda and Tanzania are being advised by Standard Bank of South Africa, while Total SA is being advised by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation. The London-based firm law firm Clifford Chance is advising Total SA on legal matters, while CNOOC is advised by the Imperial Bank of China.
In April 2020, Tullow Oil Plc sold its "entire interests in Uganda's Lake Albert development project, including the East African Crude Oil Pipeline", to Total S.A., for a consideration of US$575 million. Total will assume all tax liabilities related to the transaction. As of April 2020, the ownership of the pipeline was as represented in the table below.
| Rank | Name of Owner | Percentage Ownership |
| 1 | Total SA | |
| 2 | China National Offshore Oil Corporation | |
| 3 | Uganda National Pipeline Company | |
| 4 | Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation | |
| Total |