Popular oil major TotalEnergies has successfully dodged a legal bullet. The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project, jointly developed by the company and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), along with the state-owned Uganda National Oil Company, recently evaded a legal sanction.
The East African Court of Justice dismissed a case challenging TotalEnergies’ massive oil project in Uganda and Tanzania, after civil society groups sought a full trial over the controversial development.
Recall that 4 civil society groups first filed a petition 5 years ago demanding full legal scrutiny of the EACOP, citing its far-reaching human rights, environmental and climate violations.
The 1,443km pipeline – set to be the world’s longest heated pipeline – will help transport crude from oilfields being developed around Lake Albert in northwestern Uganda to the Port of Tanga, Tanzania, on the Indian Ocean.
Hours ago, the East African Court of Justice dismissed the case on procedural grounds, ruling that it was filed outside the 60-day limit, upholding a 2023 decision by a lower court.
Reacting, one of the lawyers representing the civil society groups, Dale Onyango, expressed disappointment that the case was struck out, stressing that the case was not peroperly heard.
“We are disappointed. The legal options are now extremely limited.
The case has not been heard, not on its merits. What has just been happening across the three to four years are preliminary issues … there is no substance,” he said.
While some people believe the $5.6bn oilfields and pipeline project, over 60% complete, is an economic boost for Uganda and Tanzania, with several impoverished citizens, environmentalists strongly oppose the decision.
Environmentalists have warned that the project is destroying vital ecosystems, with the Climate Accountability Institute tagging it a “carbon bomb.”
“This ruling is a blow for affected communities, but it doesn’t make EACOP any less of a reckless gamble,” lawyer Coleen Scott added.
