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Facilities are meant to reduce transport costs of petroleum products
Kampala, Uganda | IAN KATUSIIME | Member States party to the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Agreement (NCTTA) have agreed to cooperate to promote the use of the Kawuku oil jetty in Uganda and the Kisumu oil jetty in Kenya as part of efforts to implement multimodal transport along the Northern Corridor. This was at a workshop held in Entebbe, Uganda on March 16.
The Northern Corridor is the transport corridor linking the Great Lakes countries of Burundi, D. R. Congo, Rwanda and Uganda to the Kenyan sea port of Mombasa.
Officials from the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority, Kenya Pipeline Company, Mahathi Infra-Uganda (developer of the oil jetty at Kawuku), Uganda National Roads Authority, among others brainstormed on how to improve the two oil transport facilities.
“Today, the NCTTCA has come to raise awareness of Oil Industry operators and regulators in the region on the potential presented by the use of multimodal transport of petroleum products in reduction of cost of transport,” Omae Nyarandi, the NCTTA Executive Secretary said in his speech.
“The case of Kisumu Oil Jetty and Kawuku Mahathi Oil Jetty are game changers in the region in terms of reducing the cost of transport of petroleum products and protection of a good section of our roads,” he added.
Kenya and Uganda Revenue Authorities, clearing and forwarding authorities together with the major oil marketers such as Vivo Energy, Total, Stabex, also highlighted their expectations.
The objective of the workshop was to sensitise stakeholders to promote multimodal transportation of petroleum products encompassing use of inland waterways on Lake Victoria to promote safety as well as reduce costs of transportation of petroleum products.
The Northern Corridor Secretariat said the specific objective of the meeting was threefold; create awareness of oil industry about potential of multimodal transport through use of facilities on Lake Victoria; converge interests of oil suppliers, oil marketing companies and relevant State authorities; and devise workable recommendations as a roadmap to operationalise use of oil facilities on Lake Victoria.
