The world’s newest oil producing country is emerging from Africa with a 230,000 bpd target

The global market is set for the emergence of a new African oil exporter. Uganda, typically known for its coffee, gold, and cocoa beans among other key exports, is about to join the elusive club of oil producing countries.

• Uganda is set to become a new African oil exporter, starting shipments of its Pearl Sweet crude by December and aiming for 230,000 barrels per day within three years.
• The first crude will come from the Kingfisher oil field, with output starting at 25,000 barrels per day and expected to rise to 40,000 within six months.
• Uganda has chosen global trader Vitol Group to export its oil, which will be transported via the new 1,500-kilometer East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) to Tanzania's Tanga port.
• The $5.6 billion EACOP project, led by TotalEnergies and including partners from Uganda, Tanzania, and China, will be the world's longest heated crude oil pipeline.

The East African country has put plans in motion to export its Pearl Sweet grade by December and increase to 230,000 barrels a day within three years.

The country’s energy minister and some senior officials are pitching Pearl Sweet to potential export markets at the Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference by S&P Global Energy in Singapore this week.

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On Tuesday, Proscovia Nabbanja, Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda National Oil Company, stated that the medium-to-heavy, low-sulfur crude oil will be benchmarked against Brent crude.

Pearl Sweet crude is expected to initially be sourced from the Kingfisher oil field, operated by Cnooc Ltd, as reported by Bloomberg.

Production at the field is scheduled to reach 25,000 barrels per day from December, with output projected to increase to 40,000 barrels per day within six months, according to Irene Pauline Batebe, Permanent Secretary at Uganda’s Energy Ministry.

The country’s larger Tilenga development, operated by TotalEnergies SE, is expected to begin production in the first quarter of 2027.

Uganda has selected global oil trader Vitol Group to market the crude internationally.

Once extracted, the crude will be transported through the 1,500-kilometer East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), which will connect Uganda’s oil-producing region to the Tanzanian port of Tanga.

EACOP

The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) is set to become the world's longest heated crude oil pipeline. Spanning from Uganda's Albertine Graben oil fields to Tanga port in Tanzania, the pipeline is engineered to transport Uganda's waxy crude at approximately 50 degrees Celsius, with a daily capacity reaching 230,000 barrels.

This infrastructure project plays a vital role in Uganda's plan to commercialize its estimated 6.5 billion barrels of crude reserves and stimulate national economic growth via oil exports.

The $5.6 billion pipeline operates as a joint venture led by French energy conglomerate TotalEnergies, in partnership with the Uganda National Oil Company, the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation, and China's CNOOC.

According to Tanzanian officials, the initiative has already brought in roughly 50 billion Tanzanian shillings ($19.5 million) through various taxes, levies, and construction fees.

However, the pipeline has been a source of contention between the two East African governments involved and human rights groups, which show concern about the project’s effects on the environment and its natives.

In July, it was reported that some Ugandan farmers were preparing to file a lawsuit in the UK High Court against the company operating the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).

The lawsuit was crowdfunded through donations from more than 40,000 people, coordinated by global campaign group Avaaz, which describes the lawsuit as "one final chance to stop one of the worst oil pipelines on the planet."

The legal claim contends that the 1,443-kilometer (897-mile) infrastructure project poses significant threats to local water resources, wildlife habitats, biodiversity, and protected ecosystems, while further exacerbating climate-related risks.