Government seeks Shs 480 bn to kickstart oil production

Government is seeking a Shs 480 billion supplementary budget towards the funding of the Uganda National Oil Company to enable it to sign off the Final Investment Decision.

The minister of Finance, Matia Kasaija told the Budget committee of parliament that the money will enable the National Oil Company to embark on oil production as per the agreement for the construction of the Shs 13 trillion East African Crude Oil pipeline.

"When we saw this, we realised that God is smiling at us, that is why we want to move at a high speed," Kasaija said.

Kasaija told the members of the committee that part of the Shs 480 billion will cover the remaining balance in the land acquisition, compensation processes among other issues.

The meeting however ended prematurely as the committee members told the finance ministry to come back with more information, before the budget can be passed.

In his recent address, President Museveni revealed that investors were close to making a final investment decision for oil production.

The final investment decision represents the point where international oil companies and government commit to embark on oil production.