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For Immediate Release
January, 31 2022, 11:07am EDT
Contact:
Mark Raven
Tel: +447841474125
Email: mark@350.org
Fight to End Finance for East African Crude Oil Pipeline Escalates
On Tuesday 2nd February, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is expected to announce a milestone in the highly controversial process to build the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) - a 1,443-kilometer crude oil pipeline from Hoima in Uganda to the port of Tanga in Tanzania that, if completed, would be the longest heated crude oil pipeline in the world.
WASHINGTON
On Tuesday 2nd February, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is expected to announce a milestone in the highly controversial process to build the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) - a 1,443-kilometer crude oil pipeline from Hoima in Uganda to the port of Tanga in Tanzania that, if completed, would be the longest heated crude oil pipeline in the world.
At an official ceremony scheduled for Tuesday, Museveni will officially sign a Final Investment Decision (FID) for the EACOP project, sending the signal that it has the necessary financial backing required to go ahead. However it is widely understood that this massive new fossil fuel project still faces a significant funding shortfall of at least $2.5billion.
Campaigners are stepping up efforts to ensure this fossil fuel finance is never made available. Many major banks have already ruled out supporting the project, while activists are now applying pressure to those that remain as potential funders. These banks include: Standard Bank (South Africa), ICBC (China), JPMorgan Chase (USA), MUFG (Japan), Standard Chartered (UK), Citi (US), Deutsche Bank (Germany) and SMBC (Japan).
Landry Ninteretse, 350Africa.org Regional Director said:
"The future of East Africa relies on building sustainable, diversified and inclusive economies - not by letting huge multinational corporations like Total extract resources and keep the profit. The impacts of building the East Africa Oil Pipeline will be devastating for our communities, for wildlife and for the planet. But, despite today's announcement and the PR drive from fossil fuel supporters, EACOP is not inevitable. In fact, it needs billions of dollars from private banks around the world to become viable. Most of these banks have already distanced themselves from this controversial project. Together we can further pressure the reluctant ones and stop this fossil finance flowing into the East Africa region and instead support real solutions that not only safeguard the rights of the communities and protect the environment, but also deliver sustainable development for local communities."
Isabelle l'Heritier, 350.org France campaigner said:
"The French oil giant Total is on the verge of building a devastating oil pipeline right through the heart of Africa - displacing thousands of households, endangering water resources for millions of Ugandans and Tanzanians, devastating vulnerable ecosystems, and pushing the world further into climate chaos. The people benefitting from this aren't local communities, they are rich European banks and oil companies like Total. Over 260 organisations are urgently trying to convince banks around the world to rule out supporting this disastrous project. Eleven banks, including three French banks, have already pulled out. In Europe we are stepping up our efforts to work with African groups to cut the flows of finance from European banks that want to keep profiting from disastrous, unwanted projects in the global south."
350 is building a future that's just, prosperous, equitable and safe from the effects of the climate crisis. We're an international movement of ordinary people working to end the age of fossil fuels and build a world of community-led renewable energy for all.
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