Uganda is entering a critical transition phase as it prepares to begin commercial oil production in the second half of 2026, with government officials urging domestic enterprises to rapidly position themselves for emerging opportunities after nearly two decades of development work. Speaking at the opening of the 6th Annual National Content Conference in Kampala on Wednesday, Okasai Opolot, minister of state for energy, described the moment as “defining” as the country shifts from infrastructure construction to production from reserves estimated at 6.65 billion barrels, with 1.65 billion barrels commercially recoverable.
Uganda expects to produce 230,000 barrels per day at peak output, positioning it among Africa’s mid-tier producers alongside countries such as Equatorial Guinea and the Republic of Congo. Ernest Rubondo, executive director of the Petroleum Authority of Uganda, outlined key sectors where local companies should prepare to compete, including maintenance contracts, chemical and equipment supply, health and safety services, logistics, ICT solutions, and specialized engineering. “Our focus is to maximise value retention for Ugandans and make Uganda a sound investment destination,” Rubondo said at the conference, which runs through Thursday at Mestil Hotel.
However, Michael Atingi-Ego, governor of the Bank of Uganda, issued a cautionary message in his keynote address, warning that resource extraction alone would not guarantee prosperity. Citing economists Paul Collier and Joseph Stiglitz, he emphasized that the true test would be “converting resources into productive assets.” The 11 billion dollars already invested in Uganda’s oil sector has funded roads, industrial parks, and logistics infrastructure, Atingi-Ego noted. Success, he stressed, would ultimately be measured by whether the oil age leaves behind “empowered Ugandan firms, skilled workers, and resilient communities, not merely infrastructure without inclusion.”
Uganda’s oil will be exported via a 1,443-kilometre heated pipeline to the port of Tanga in Tanzania. Initial production will begin at fields in the Albertine Graben in western Uganda before crude is delivered to a central processing facility in Kabaale, Hoima district.Source: ugbusiness.com