Kenya is actively working to reestablish its oil business with Uganda, just days after Kampala declared its intention to shift its fuel imports to the Port of Tanga due to a disagreement with Nairobi.
President William Ruto, who recently paid a courtesy call to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, stated that the issues impacting petroleum flow between the two countries are undergoing resolution.
The leaders also discussed plans to implement the Eldoret-Kampala- Kigali pipeline, a previously conceptualised project.
“I am pleased that the issues affecting petroleum product flow between Kenya and Uganda are being resolved. We have agreed on a way forward for sourcing and scheduling imports in the region to ensure competitive pricing and logistical efficiency,” President Ruto said on his X account.
He added, “…we also discussed the urgent need for both countries to pursue the design and construction of the earlier conceptualized Eldoret-Kampala-Kigali refined petroleum product pipeline.”
It has emerged that Uganda is in Talks with Tanzania to have its petroleum imports pass through the port of Tanga in Tanzania as Kampala seeks an alternative route.
For decades, Kenya has supplied crude oil to its East African neighbors, and Uganda imports 90 percent of its refined petroleum products through the Mombasa port.
Approximately one-third of all fuel imported into Kenya is destined for the transit market, amounting to an average of 200 million liters monthly.
Uganda’s Ministry of Energy announced last year that they would suspend a deal with Kenya’s OMCs due to Nairobi’s establishment of a government-to-government arrangement with Gulf nations, causing disruptions in the local fuel market in Kampala.
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