Feature Articles / China to Invest in Uganda's Oil Infrastructure
China to Invest in Uganda's Oil Infrastructure - “The Chinese government has attached great importance to the development of infrastructure in Africa, Uganda in particular, and made it one of the key areas of cooperation in the framework of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum.” - Mr Sun, Chinese ambassador to Uganda.

China to Invest in Uganda's Oil Infrastructure

“The Chinese government has attached great importance to the development of infrastructure in Africa, Uganda in particular, and made it one of the key areas of cooperation in the framework of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum.” - Mr Sun, Chinese ambassador to Uganda.
By locations4business

Mr Sun Heping, the Chinese ambassador to Uganda, pledged further investment in Uganda’s oil infrastructure, when he made this statement to a Chinese news agency recently.

He said that this type of investment has so far helped China’s dialogues with African states and has resulted in the implementation of several development projects in infrastructure, education and health.

Oil was discovered in the Albertine Graben region (western Uganda) in 2006. So far, about one billion barrels of crude oil have been found in the area. Tullow estimates that there are a further 1.2 billion barrels in the area, which also borders the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Mr Sun reported that the Chinese and Ugandan governments have been in close contact over the proposed Kampala-Entebbe highway project. It will be Uganda’s first highway and is expected to cost about $350 million. Mr Sun hopes that the project, which has already the development of a dual carriageway at the Kampala end, “will get underway in 2011”.

 The highway will be funded by a preferential loan from China and will provide an efficient link between the capital and its international airport at Entebbe – 40km south of Kampala.

The new route is part of a wider Chinese investment in African infrastructure, which includes plans for transport corridors between a new port at Lama in Kenya, Uganda and Sudan, dramatically easing the transportation of oil to China and elsewhere. The corridors will include an oil pipeline, roads and railways.

The China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) is also seeking to build an oil refinery in the western Uganda, in partnership with Total and Tullow, which would massively increase China’s investment in the country’s oil resources.

Ugandan president, President Museveni, is known to be keen to build a highly developed Ugandan oil industry, with China’s help. Apart from investment in infrastructure projects, assistance will also include participation in the production of oil products and helping the Uganda to attain its UN Millennium Development Goals before 2015.