Uganda: Uganda's Oil Can Transform Economy If Managed Well - Museveni

What the report says

President Yoweri Museveni said Uganda’s petroleum resources could help transform the economy if they are managed carefully and tied to industrial growth, according to a Nile Post report published through AllAfrica. He made the remarks during a visit to the Kingfisher Oilfield in Buhuka, Kikuube District, where the Kingfisher Central Processing Facility has reached mechanical completion as Uganda moves closer to its first commercial oil output.

During the visit, Museveni also introduced “Pearl Sweet” as the name for Uganda’s crude oil. He said the oil’s low sulphur content makes it easier and cheaper to refine, and argued that oil income should be used to build long-term assets such as power generation, railways and other infrastructure rather than being spent on consumption or luxury imports.

The report says officials from the energy ministry and project partners outlined progress at Kingfisher and across the wider oil infrastructure. Permanent Secretary Pauline Irene Batebe said first oil was expected by the end of September and that the processing facility is designed to handle 40,000 barrels a day. The report also says the East African Crude Oil Pipeline to Tanzania’s Tanga Port was nearing completion.

Museveni said gas from the field would not be flared but used for electricity generation and liquefied petroleum gas production. The article adds that the oil project has already supported roads, an airport and other infrastructure in the Bunyoro sub-region, and that Uganda’s leaders and foreign partners see the sector as a platform for jobs, skills and wider industrial development.