President Yoweri Museveni is expected to preside over the naming of Uganda’s crude oil blend tommorow, Wednesday during a visit to oil development projects in the Albertine Graben, as the country moves closer to commercial oil production.
The President is expected to tour key oil facilities as Uganda prepares to give its crude an official blend name that will identify and distinguish it in the international petroleum market.
The naming is expected to mark another milestone in Uganda’s transition from developing its oil resources to preparing crude for production, transportation and eventual export.
Museveni’s anticipated visit was preceded by an inspection of the Tilenga project by Energy and Mineral Development minister Dr Monica Musenero Masanza, who led senior officials from the ministry, the Petroleum Authority of Uganda (PAU) and the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC).
The delegation inspected ongoing development works, including the Central Processing Facility (CPF), where construction is 72 per cent complete, and drilling operations at the Gunya-02 well pad.
The minister also met Project Affected Persons (PAPs) in Kyamandindi village to assess the implementation of livelihood restoration programmes. UNOC said naming the crude blend would mark an important stage in Uganda’s preparation to enter the international petroleum market.
“For years, Uganda’s oil has existed as a resource beneath our soil. It has been discovered, studied, developed and prepared for the journey from our oil fields to the world. This is the moment Uganda’s crude moves from being known by what it is to being known by what it is called. Tomorrow, Uganda puts a name to its oil. Tomorrow, it gets an identity!” UNOC said in a statement.
The blend name is expected to reflect the characteristics of Uganda’s crude and provide it with a distinct identity in the global oil market.
Tilenga project gathers momentum
During the inspection, TotalEnergies EP Uganda General Manager Philippe Groueix said the Tilenga project had maintained strong momentum, with thousands of workers engaged across various sites.
He said construction of the CPF was being accelerated as the project advances towards production. The CPF is designed to receive and process crude oil produced from the Tilenga fields before it is transferred into the transportation system.
Musenero commended the progress but said the benefits of the oil project should extend beyond the construction phase.
She said Uganda must ensure that communities, workers and businesses that have developed alongside the project continue to benefit through skills development, enterprise growth and participation in the wider oil and gas value chain.
“My expectation is that it will be permanently transformative. We must ensure that the people, businesses, and communities that have grown alongside this project continue to benefit and move forward long after construction is completed,” Musenero said.
TotalEnergies Uganda deputy general manager Mariam Nampeera said nearly 16,000 Ugandans had so far been employed on the project.
She said more than 2.18 million training man-hours had been delivered, while more than $795 million had been spent on goods and services sourced from Ugandan businesses and institutions.
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