PAU's Director of Environment, Health, Safety, and Security, Dr. Joseph Kobusheshe says that whoever is looking at opportunities in the Albertine graben must know that it will not be about making profits at the expense of the environment and livelihoods of the people.
NEEMA's oil and gas lead , Isaac Ntujju with visiting Norwegian experts standing on top of Buhuka Flats escarpment. Companies like CNOOC which operates in this area have to abide by ESG requirements
The
Petroleum Authority-PAU says investors in oil and gas must adhere to environmental, social, and governance concerns
or face hefty fines and penalties.
The authority's Director
of Environment, Health, Safety, and Security, Dr. Joseph Kobusheshe says that whoever is
looking at opportunities in the Albertine graben must know that it will not be
about making profits at the expense of the environment and livelihoods of the people.
“As you make money don’t focus on quick money.
Make sure that your business is focused on making money for today, tomorrow, and
for ten years to come. As we make money in oil and gas, we don’t affect a
fisherman in Buliisa,” said Kobushehe who was one of the panelists at the just-concluded
Third Annual National Content Conference.
//Cue in “ My
message is that ...
Cue Out .... contract
terminated.//
While the conference
was aimed at ensuring that Oil and gas companies adhere to the national content requirements,
concerns about the environment and social issues kept on coming up.
According to
Kobusheshe, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) requirements have been
adopted as part of the best practices in oil and gas operations.
“It has become
an important measure of sustainability and ethical impact of the way we conduct
business. If anyone has been looking at ESG as a cost, it is not that way. ESG
should not be looked at as a cost or a hindrance but rather as a business
opportunity,” advised Kobusheshe
The development of
Uganda’s oil and gas sector is attracting global attention with the debate about
the energy transition. The oil and gas sector at a global level has been blamed
for playing a major role in the destruction of the environment.
Some studies
have estimated that oil and gas operations account for 9% of all human-made
greenhouse gases. Others have found that the burning of fossil fuels produces 33%
of global emissions.
Amid growing
concerns – and activism – against Uganda’s oil and gas development in Tilenga
and Kingfisher, the Petroleum Authority and the Oil and Gas Companies are ensuring
that the developments at all levels adhere with environmental, social, and governance
(ESG) goals. The issues go beyond the environment to include, child labor, exploitation
of workers, and human rights among others.
ESG has transcended
from being a tick-box exercise for oil and gas firms and their subcontractors.
It is part of the scores in the tendering processes.
According to Kobusheshe, investors
are now looking for disclosure of ESG-related issues supported by quantitative
data to garner capital.
“Biodiversity is
a very important aspect, especially for Uganda’s oil and gas sector because obviously
in the area where we operate,” said Kobusheshe “This is the only way that we
can create e lasting value. Not the boom from oil and gas today that affects
future generations,
” Some civil society
groups have expressed fear about the likely pollution of Lake Albert and Lake
Victoria because of the various discharges from oil and gas operations.
The
Kingfisher project operated by CNOOC will have well pads and most of its infrastructure
on the shorelines of Lake Albert in the Buhuka escarpment area.
The Joint Venture
partners in Uganda’s oil and gas sector TotalEnergies, CNOOC, and Uganda
National Oil Company in February took an FID for the developments in the Albertine
and the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).
The EACOP project
has since then been in the limelight with its opponents claiming that it’s construction
is likely o displace tensof thousands of people, and endanger the critical ecosystems
of the Lake Victoria basin.
The National Environment Management Authority approved the EACOP
Environment Social Impact Assessment in 2020. The head of the Oil, gas, and Extractive
Sector at NEMA, Isaac Ntujju said EACOP has suffered a lot of negative
publicity based on misinformation.
“Much of the information out there
is not based on facts. The facts are available with the ESIA. And we should not
fear the Giant that is not yet born. I think much of it I based on perception
and fear that a giant will be born,” said Ntujju
Campaigners have alleged that the nearly 1,445-kilometer pipeline would run through numerous important habitats
and nature reserves – home to a number of iconic and endangered animals, such
as lions, elands, lesser kudu, buffalo, impalas, hippos, giraffes, roan
antelopes, sitatungas, sables, zebras, aardvarks, and the red colobus monkey
John Habumugisha, Deputy Managing Director/GM Uganda Branch
East African Crude Oil Pipeline Ltd said anything being done around EACOP
must be stringently compliant with the ESG requirements. “So there is no doubt
that EACOP is and will continue to be one of the most stringently compliant projects,” said Habumugisha.
With the winds
of change howling in the world of the oil and gas industry, Habumugisha revealed that for EACOP meeting environmental, social and
corporate governance (ESG) standards is key despite the delay in compensation of
project affected persons.
“In Uganda, in terms
of the environment, we avoided most of the sensitive areas. There were a few
swamps where we had to pass. When you are going through swamps and rivers, the design
levels are quite stringent that the system ensures that we don’t have spillage”
said Habumugisha.
According to t
the EACOP designs, the pipeline will be buried 1.2 meters below the surface.
According to Habumugisha once the pipeline is fully buried below the surface,
it will be hard for one passing over it to realize that it is buried there.
“For
those who have heard that we are going to pollute Lake Victoria, that is not
true. We have a lot of systems planned. We have intrusion detection, leak
detection, we have surveillance and solarisation,” he said
“Solarisation is
about the environment again. What it man is that when you do any project, it
will have a footprint. So we will have 100 megawatts of solar energy installed
on this project. So EACOP could be the most green pipeline globally”
A group of the anti-EACOP lobby in
March met with Pope Francis at the Vatican to seek his support to stop the
construction of the EACOP. It has emerged as one of the challenges that Uganda
and Tanzania have to overcome according to Habumugisha.
“There is a process to ensure that information that reaches the church is
accurate. The worst thing you can do is to misinform the faithful. So we are
providing them with facts so that they are better informed So that they communicate
appropriately,” he revealed.
EACOP pipeline will cross Tala forest reserve. That fact has generated
concerns by environmental groups claiming that it will threaten a number of plant
and animal species. Habumugisha does not deny that the pipeline has been routed
through that forest reserve.
“We are passing through an area that is not
forested. The key issue is that if we have any footprint where we pass, we shall
ensure that it is improved.” He said
