The Ugandan Government has unveiled its oil drilling activities in the country’s western district of Kikuube. This is Uganda’s first of four oil rigs to begin drilling at the Kingfisher field on the shores of Lake Albert.

At the launch of the Kingfisher oil drilling rig, President Yoweri Museveni said “the development was a historic event because the British colonialists discovered oil in the area in the 1920s”.

President Museveni thanked the Chinese government for supporting Uganda in its development. The Kingfisher grid which is located near the southern flank of Lake Albert is also operated by China’s CNOOC, China National Offshore Oil Corporation. 

Asides from the Kingfisher rigs, three other rigs will be installed in Tilenga, north of Lake Albert, with a total of 31 wells to be drilled and 426 production wells, respectively. The Tilenga project is operated by France’s TotalEnergies.

Reports assert that by 2025, the Kingfisher grid will produce a total of 40,000 barrels by day, while the Tilenga project will produce 190,000 barrels of oil per day, and will account for 85% of the expected oil revenues. 

According to the Executive Director of the Petroleum Authority of Uganda, Ernest Rubondo, the Kingfisher project will account for 15% of the total oil revenue to the government from upstream operations, equivalent to $6.9 billion for the entire project or $360 million in a year.

The Ugandan government plans to export oil and refine and support petrol-chemical based industrial projects 

Ruth Nankabirwa, Minister for Energy and Mineral Development thanked the president and the parliament for their steadfast support of the project.