President Yoweri Museveni has commissioned the development of a new petroleum storage terminal in Mpigi district that is expected to more than double Uganda’s government and private-sector fuel storage capacity.
The Kampala Storage Terminal, to be developed by the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), will have a capacity of 320 million litres and sit on 300 acres at Namwabula village.
Museveni commissioned the project on Thursday, September 17, saying expanded storage was necessary to strengthen Uganda’s petroleum security and ensure reliable supplies to the local and regional markets.
The terminal will receive and distribute petroleum products from the planned refinery in Hoima and will also serve as a strategic reserve facility.
Uganda currently has about 159.7 million litres of petroleum storage capacity, according to figures presented by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development.
The capacity includes 30 million litres at the government-owned Jinja Storage Terminal, 70 million litres at Mahathi Infrastructure in Kawuku and about 59.7 million litres held by oil marketing companies.
UNOC’s Jinja facility, which was established in the 1970s, has a capacity of 30 million litres and can hardly hold enough products for more than a week.
Museveni said the new terminal would improve the country’s ability to maintain strategic reserves and make fuel supplies more reliable and efficient.
He cautioned, however, that the facility should not be treated as the final answer to Uganda’s petroleum storage needs.
The president said Uganda must continue preparing for larger storage facilities as demand for petroleum products grows.
Uganda consumes up to 240 million litres of fuel every month, according to Ministry of Energy officials.
Museveni also credited Vitol Bahrain for helping maintain Uganda’s fuel supply chain by providing petroleum products on credit, with government payments made when funds become available.
The president used the occasion to highlight regional cooperation in the petroleum sector, saying Uganda would participate in the development of a larger refinery in Tanga, Tanzania.
“I am happy that Her Excellency Samia Suluhu has sent a delegation, so we are working together with East Africa to develop our petroleum,” Museveni remarked.
A delegation from the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation was among the dignitaries who attended the commissioning.
Museveni also raised environmental concerns surrounding the terminal, particularly the encroachment on wetlands and other water bodies.
He questioned the presence of a garbage dumping site near the petroleum facility and called for it to be moved, describing its proximity to the terminal as dangerous.
“We must find alternative means of dealing with waste. One of the ways is through incineration, which is also a source of electricity,” he ordered.
UNOC board chairman Mathias Katamba said the terminal would help Uganda develop into a regional petroleum products hub.
He said UNOC had obtained the necessary government and building permits from local authorities, as well as a petroleum facility construction permit from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development.
Katamba said construction works under the Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract are due to start on September 18, 2026.
Detailed engineering is expected to be completed by March 2027, with commissioning planned within 24 months of the contract’s effective date, around September 2028.
Energy and Mineral Development Minister Monica Musenero said the terminal was recommended in a 2017 master plan prepared by the ministry.
She said it would serve several pipeline projects, including the Eldoret-Kampala petroleum products pipeline extension and the Kampala-Kigali petroleum products pipeline extension.
The facility will also be the delivery point for the Hoima-Buloba petroleum products pipeline from the planned Uganda Refinery, Musenero said.
Energy Ministry Permanent Secretary Irene Batebe said Uganda’s limited storage capacity exposes the country to disruptions along import routes, global supply shortages and sudden increases in prices.
“Adequate strategic reserves are essential to keep industry running, transport moving, and households supplied even when external supply chains are interrupted.
The Kampala Storage Terminal will strengthen Uganda’s ability to hold meaningful volumes of petroleum products, improve resilience against prolonged supply disruptions, and contribute to more stable pump prices for consumers,” Batebe said.
She said the terminal would expand national storage capacity beyond Jinja and provide space for oil marketing companies while serving as a distribution centre for Kampala, the central region and other parts of the country.
“Once commissioned, the terminal will significantly expand our national storage capacity beyond the existing Jinja terminal and serve as a strategic reserve facility, a hospitality terminal for oil marketing companies, and a central distribution hub for Kampala, the central region and other parts of the country,” she added.
The terminal was first conceptualised by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development in 2008. Its development mandate was transferred to UNOC in 2018.
The supplied information gives two different estimates for the project cost. One puts the cost at about $250 million, while another gives a figure of $310 million, or about Sh1.22 trillion.
The project is expected to take 24 months to complete.
