Uganda's $5.6bn oil pipeline nears completion, promising market access but regional gains remain uncertain

The East African Crude Oil Pipeline, stretching 1,443 km from Uganda’s Albertine Graben to Tanzania’s Chongoleani terminal near the Port of Tanga, is 92.7% complete and projected to be ready for crude flow by mid-December 2026, with commercial output aimed for before June 2027. The pipeline’s cost has risen to about $5.6bn, roughly 55% higher than earlier estimates, and is financed largely by its shareholders after limited support from Western banks.

At peak, the associated Tilenga and Kingfisher fields could produce around 230,000 barrels per day, feeding a pipeline capacity of 246,000 bpd. Tanzania anticipates revenue from transit and hopes the Chongoleani terminal will anchor a $20bn regional energy hub, though much of that plan remains non-binding. Uganda will still import most refined fuels until a domestic refinery is built, and analysts caution that global decarbonisation could cut the oil’s value by over half, while financing and environmental challenges persist.