The construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) has reached 79 percent completion, and is firmly on course for handover come the second quarter of this year.
According to the latest project status report, as of December 31, 2025, land acquisition has been fully concluded, while all pipeline sections had been coated in Tanzania by late December.
Pipeline layout alone is reported at 62 percent, with more than 1,400 kilometres of pipe welded and over 500 kilometres already buried.
The offshore and onshore jetty, which will load Ugandan crude onto international tankers, is more than 86% complete and is expected to be ready by the second quarter of 2026.
The project is targeting a start-up date of July 31, 2026, with the first oil tanker expected to be loaded at the Tanga terminal in October 2026, a development Uganda views as transformative for its oil and gas sector and broader economy.
While on a fact-finding mission to the project areas in both Uganda and Tanzania recently, the Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ruth Nankabirwa, held bilateral engagements with her Tanzanian counterpart, Deogratius Ndejembi, alongside other officials.
The discussions focused on project progress, cross-border coordination, and regulatory preparedness.
In a press release, UNOC said Nankabirwa got a clearer picture of the project’s implementation status on the ground.
She emphasized the pipeline’s strategic importance in enabling Uganda to access international oil markets while deepening regional energy cooperation, the release added.
Commissioning activities are being undertaken by a joint venture between United Kingdom-based Kent Energies and Uganda’s Inspecta Africa.
These activities, including system integrity tests, are scheduled to run through March 2026, with key testing planned at Pump Station 1 in Hoima and additional pumping stations across Tanzania.
Beyond oil export revenues, Uganda is expected to earn additional income through electricity exports to power the pipeline’s heating and pumping infrastructure.
Most of this power will be sourced from Uganda to maintain crude oil temperatures along the pipeline and ensure uninterrupted operations.
However, even as construction advances, the EACOP project continues to attract scrutiny over its environmental and social impacts.
Environmental groups have raised concerns about the pipeline’s route through ecologically sensitive areas, including wetlands, wildlife habitats, and water catchment zones such as the Lake Victoria basin, which supports millions of people in East Africa.
Project developers and both governments, however, maintain that extensive environmental and social safeguards are in place.
EACOP Ltd has previously stated that it is implementing mitigation measures, including careful routing, biodiversity offsets, livelihood restoration programs, and continuous environmental monitoring to minimise ecological disruption and community displacement.
