Construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) has surpassed 81 per cent completion, marking a decisive advance on one of the continent’s most consequential energy infrastructure projects and bringing the prospect of first oil exports tantalisingly close.
Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) Director of Planning and Investment, Derick Moshi, confirmed the milestone, stating that the 1,443-kilometre pipeline — which will carry crude oil from Uganda’s Lake Albert fields to the Tanzanian port of Tanga for export — is on course for completion by mid-2027, with the first barrel of oil expected to flow through the pipeline before the end of that year.
“The project is now more than 81 per cent complete and we expect to see the first barrel of oil transported through the pipeline by next year,” Moshi said, adding that ongoing global oil supply disruptions have only sharpened the strategic importance of the pipeline in enhancing regional energy security.
TPDC, which holds a 15 per cent stake in the project, is a partner alongside TotalEnergies and the Uganda National Oil Company. The project commenced construction in 2021/22 and has since generated more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs. On the Tanzanian section alone, 8,856 workers have been employed, with 90 per cent of them being Tanzanian youth.
In a further sign of Tanzania’s ambitions to build a fuller energy value chain, the government has already initiated plans to construct an oil refinery in Tanga to strengthen the domestic availability of petroleum products and serve neighbouring countries.
TotalEnergies EP Africa Vice-President for Engagement and Advocacy, Marieme Sav Sow, said the project is transforming lives through skills transfer, employment and professional networking. EACOP Operations Director Paul Hiegel added that when completed, the pipeline will create a generation of skilled workers ready to sustain its long-term operations.
Source: allafrica.com