A group of farmers from across Uganda are attempting to prevent the completion of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, which it intended to carry crude oil from western Uganda to the Indian Ocean port of Tanga in Tanzania, by bringing a court case in London against the pipeline's owner, EACOP Ltd., arguing that the construction of the pipeline contravenes Clause 39 of the Ugandan Constitution, which guarantees that 'Every Ugandan has a right to a clean and healthy environment', as well as breaching the Ugandan National Environment Act and National Climate Change Act.
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline is intended to carry oil from two oilfields, the Tilenga and Kingfisher oil fields, on the shores of Lake Albert, to the Tanzanian coast. The Tilenga Oil Field is being developed by the French multinational TotalEnergies, while the Kingfisher Oil Field is being developed by the China National Offshore Oil Corporation. Between them the two companies plan to drill more than 400 wells, eight of which will lie within the Murchison Falls National Park. Because of the dense nature of the oil, the pipeline will need to be heated to 50°C along its entire 1443 km length, making it the world's largest heated pipeline, and significantly increasing the project's carbon footprint. The project was initiated in 2016 and is 78% complete, having been the subject of numerous legal challenges and protests in East Africa.
EACOP Ltd. is 62% owned by TotalEnergies, with the China National Offshore Oil Corporation owning 8%, and the Uganda National Oil Company and Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation owning 15% each. However, it is registered as a company in London, leading the Ugandan farmers to hope that bringing a case there may be effective. A number of previous cases brought in Uganda and Tanzania by farmers evicted from their lands to make way for the pipeline have been unsuccessful (according to figures provided by TotalEnergy, around 100 000 people in the two countries will have lost some land to the project, with around 5000 forced to relocate completely).
The project's leaders have asserted that the project is an essential part of the transition to carbon neutrality, and that it's footprint will be offset by a number of social and environmental projects. These include a package of US$19 million in payments plus US$22 in in-kind compensation for persons affected by the Tilinga Oil Field, and US$32 million in cash plus US$68 million in in-kind compensation for persons affected by the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, training in agricultural practices and small business-development, distribution of food items recommended by the United Nations World Food Program (e.g. rice, pulses, oil), the rebuilding of a health centre in Buliisa District, funding for 338 students from Buliisa, Nwoya Pakwach, Nebbi and Masindi districts to take O-and A-level science courses, the renovation of twelve staff housing units at Anaka General Hospital, drilling of several boreholes in Bulisa District, which will improve access to water for 4000 people and 10 000 cattle, the provision of a number of 5-day courses at Makerere University taught by professionals or experts from TotalEnergies, as well as access to six online courses for thousands of students, the construction of a 115 MW solar park and 100 MW wind farm in Tanzania, the construction of renewable energy projects capable of producing 60mw of energy, instillation of a 15mw solar plant at the Tilenga Central Processing Facility, the potential development of a 150mw solar thermal facility at the Tilenga Central Processing Facility, restoration of 10 km² of rain forest, the protection of 100 km² of natural forest, projects to protect populations of Antelopes and Giraffes in Murchison Falls National Park, and a wetlands restoration project in the White Nile Delta.
However, the Ugandan farmers, with the support of global campaign group Avaaz, contend that the environmental impact of the pipeline significantly outweighs any potential benefits in a number of ways.
Firstly, the project is predicted to produce greenhouse gasses equivalent to 372 million tonnes of carbon dioxide over its planned 20 year lifetime. This is equivalent to the entire greenhouse gas emissions of Uganda for 58 years, significantly contributing to global climate change, something which is already impacting Uganda, which has suffered record-breaking floods, devastating and frequent droughts and erratic rainfall patterns in recent years.
Secondly, the pipeline is proposed to run through the Lake Victoria Basin, an environment where a significant oil leak or spill could have a catastrophic impact on Lake Victoria, an important natural habitat, source of water to people in three countries, and a major source of water to the Nile.
Thirdly, the pipeline is predicted to run through several internationally important wildlife reserves and habitats, including the Murchison Falls National Park, the Taala Forest Reserve, and the Bugoma Forest Central Forest Reserve, potentially impacting a range of habitats and endangered species.
To this end they have appointed solicitor Joe Snape of the UK law firm Leigh Day, which specialises in environmental and humans rights cases with international dimensions, to represent them in London, and hope to begin legal proceedings in May 2026.
Snape, who has previously represented members of the Ogale and Bille communities of the Niger Delta who have been affected by the activities of oil companies, has stated that 'Our clients believe the EACOP pipeline will result in enormous damage to the global climate as well as severe damage to their local environment. Our clients are already living on the frontline of the climate crisis and argue this pipeline will only exacerbate the impact they, and other vulnerable communities around the world, experience on their lives and livelihoods. They are calling for the pipeline construction and operations to be halted to stop this damaging impact on the climate in Uganda and elsewhere around the world.'
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