KAMPALA, Uganda- President Yoweri Museveni has revealed that a Kenyan senator alerted him that Uganda was purchasing petroleum products through middlemen operating in Kenya, prompting government intervention in the country’s fuel-import system.
Museveni made the disclosure on Thursday while breaking ground for the 320-million-litre Kampala Storage Terminal at Namwabula Estate in Mpigi District.
The Ugandan President said his government had entrusted the administration of key sectors to technocrats after taking power in 1986 but was surprised to learn about the petroleum supply arrangement from a foreign legislator.
“It took a Kenyan senator to alert me that Uganda was buying petroleum products through middlemen in Kenya. Unbelievable,” Museveni said.
He did not identify the senator or disclose when the information was shared.
Museveni said government intervention had reduced the cost of importing petroleum products.
According to figures he provided, diesel costs declined from $118 to $83 per metric tonne, while petrol fell from $97.50 to $61.50. Aviation fuel dropped from $114.25 to $79.25 per metric tonne.
The President linked the reductions to changes made after the government addressed the involvement of middlemen in Uganda’s petroleum supply chain.
Uganda remains heavily dependent on imported refined fuel transported through regional corridors, particularly from the Kenyan port of Mombasa. Alternative supplies also enter the country through Tanzania.
The new Kampala Storage Terminal will be developed by the state-owned Uganda National Oil Company at an estimated cost of $310 million, approximately USh1.15 trillion.
The facility will store up to 320 million litres of refined petroleum products and strengthen Uganda’s strategic fuel reserves.
It will also serve Kampala, the central region and other parts of the country while providing additional storage capacity for oil marketing companies and fuel distributors.
Uganda consumes approximately 240 million litres of petroleum products each month, including petrol, diesel, kerosene and aviation fuel.
Museveni said strengthening storage capacity was necessary as Uganda develops its domestic petroleum resources and prepares to begin commercial oil production.
He also welcomed the participation of a delegation sent by Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan, saying Uganda would continue working with Tanzania and other East African countries to improve regional petroleum security.
The terminal is expected to receive imported fuel and, in the future, products from Uganda’s planned refinery in Hoima. Plans also include linking it to the refinery through a 211-kilometre multi-products pipeline.
ChimpReports reported that the facility will occupy about 300 acres and could handle approximately 450 fuel trucks daily once operational.
