China’s Xi backs East African crude oil export pipeline, Uganda says

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said China’s leader Xi Jinping has expressed “unwavering support” for the development of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline project. 

The plan to export landlocked discoveries of crude through a pipeline running 1,443 kilometers (897 miles) to the coast of Tanzania has faced opposition from environmental groups and the European Union in part due to its effects on the local population. Museveni, who has dismissed such calls, said in a statement Friday that he received a letter from Xi that highlighted cooperation between the countries.

“The message reaffirmed China’s commitment to collaborating with Uganda to ensure the success of the project,” Museveni said, adding that the Chinese officials who hand-delivered the missive said their nation’s financial institutions are “open to discussions” on the pipeline.

The EACOP project is led by TotalEnergies SE and will transport oil developments by the French major and China’s Cnooc Ltd. The European Parliament in 2022 issued a resolution on violations of human rights in Uganda and Tanzania linked to investments in fossil fuels projects.

Museveni also thanked Chinese investors for their cooperation in hydroelectric projects and called for more collaboration to realize infrastructure projects, specifically the establishment of a railway network to the coast that’s in need of technical and material support.

Uganda’s president also appealed to Chinese companies to help increase the nation’s ability to process raw material locally. 

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.