Kenya has resolved an oil importation row with its neighbour Uganda finally allowing the East African country to import petroleum products through its port of Mombasa.
According to Reuters, the above information was relayed by Kenya’s Energy minister while speaking to a Business Daily newspaper on Thursday.
The oil importation row has caused diplomatic problems for the two countries with Uganda seeking an alternative to Kenya’s ports.
Landlocked Uganda considered using Tanzanian Ports to import its petroleum products ending decades of seamless collaboration between Uganda and Kenya in the sphere of Oil importation.
This was before Kenya made the move to resolve the row.
- “You will see UNOC (Uganda National Oil Company) getting a licence and then we will see how to work together,” Kenya’s Energy Minister Davis Chirchir said.
The minister added that UNOC will use Kenyan Pipeline company to move petroleum products meaning that Kenya will still benefit from the arrangement.
Uganda announced in November that it was set to hand over exclusive rights for the supply of all petroleum products to a global energy trader Vitol.
The government’s reason behind this is that using Kenyan firms to import petroleum into Uganda often affects retail prices in Uganda as Ugandan retail companies are always treated as a secondary option whenever there are supply disruptions.
According to Kenyan Media outlets, Kenyan President William Ruto met with his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni last month and both agreed to end the feud on Oil imports.
What To Know
- Uganda is a Landlocked country meaning it has no access to the sea. It therefore depends on the ports of Neighbouring countries for importation.
- Uganda imported $1.6 billion worth of petroleum products in 2022, mostly originating from the Gulf. Some 90% of the products are imported through Kenya.