DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania — Uganda and Tanzania have expanded their energy partnership beyond the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), with Presidents Yoweri Museveni and Samia Suluhu Hassan witnessing the signing of an agreement to develop the proposed Tanga Regional Energy Hub.
The memorandum of understanding was signed on Thursday by the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) and global energy trader Vitol Bahrain E.C.
The agreement comes as Uganda accelerates preparations to begin commercial oil production before the end of 2026.
The proposed Tanga Regional Energy Hub will provide infrastructure for petroleum storage, refining, logistics, trading and distribution in Tanzania’s port city of Tanga.
Officials said the project is expected to complement Uganda’s wider petroleum developments, including the planned 60,000-barrel-per-day Hoima refinery, while strengthening fuel security and improving access to regional export markets across East and Central Africa.
The initiative also deepens cooperation between Kampala and Dar es Salaam beyond the 1,443-kilometre East African Crude Oil Pipeline, which will transport Uganda’s crude oil from Hoima to Tanzania’s Indian Ocean coast for export.
Vitol, one of the world’s largest independent energy traders, is already a strategic partner in Uganda’s petroleum sector.
The company previously entered a seven-year partnership with UNOC to support Uganda’s fuel supply and strategic petroleum infrastructure programme, backed by financing of up to US$2 billion for fuel storage facilities, terminals, pipelines and related logistics.
Its participation in the Tanga hub extends that partnership into a broader regional petroleum trading and infrastructure network.
Uganda’s Energy Minister Dr. Monica Musenero said the agreement marked another step in the two countries’ strategy to use petroleum resources to support industrialisation rather than merely export raw commodities.
“Action speaks louder than words, and today we are privileged to witness a giant step towards joint development with our sister nation,” Dr. Musenero said.
She said the partnership would stimulate job creation, strengthen regional trade and support industries that add value to petroleum resources.
“We need to extract greater value by developing secondary and tertiary industries, building the knowledge economy and creating high-skilled jobs,” she said.
According to Dr. Musenero, feasibility studies and front-end engineering design for a refined petroleum products pipeline and storage terminal are expected to be completed later this year.
She added that studies for a proposed natural gas pipeline linking Uganda and Tanzania are at an advanced stage and are expected to conclude by October 2026.
The minister also announced that Uganda has secured US$250 million in World Bank financing for its section of a planned 400-kilovolt electricity interconnector with Tanzania, a project expected to strengthen electricity trade through the Eastern Africa Power Pool and improve links with Southern African energy markets.
Tanzanian Energy Minister Deo Ndejembi said the agreement represents the next phase of regional energy cooperation following EACOP, shifting attention from crude oil transportation to refining, storage, logistics and industrial development.
“EACOP transports molecules. The Tanga Regional Energy Hub transforms those molecules into prosperity,” Ndejembi said.
He said the proposed development could attract investments exceeding US$20 billion, while stressing that Uganda’s Hoima refinery would complement—not compete with—the Tanzanian project.
“Uganda’s decision to develop the Hoima refinery reflects its sovereign objective of maximising value from its petroleum resources through domestic refining and industrial development. Tanzania fully supports that ambition,” he said.
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Officials also outlined plans for a bidirectional pipeline that would allow refined petroleum products to move between Uganda and Tanzania based on market demand, improving supply resilience and providing Uganda with additional export routes.
The agreement was signed during President Museveni’s two-day working visit to Tanzania.
Before the ceremony, Museveni held bilateral talks with President Samia Suluhu Hassan at State House, where the two leaders discussed cooperation in energy, trade, infrastructure and regional integration.
President Samia later hosted Museveni at a state luncheon, reaffirming the two countries’ commitment to strengthening economic ties through cross-border infrastructure and energy investments.
