NYAMTAI, Uganda, Apr 3 2026 (IPS) - Environmental activists and farmer groups opposed to the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), the world’s longest heated oil pipeline, are mounting a last-ditch legal effort meant to stop its construction in a suit they plan to have filed in London, UK, believing that it stands a chance to stop the controversial project despite being at the 78 percent completion stage.
The groups have engaged the services of the London law firm of Leigh Day, one of the UK’s leading environmental and public interest litigation firms, which in the past has won landmark compensation cases for northern Kenyan communities affected by unexploded UK military munitions, among others.
With the pipeline construction said to be nearly 80 percent complete, the groups believe their petition stands a good chance of success since EACOP is owned by a company registered at the Companies House in London – the EACOP Ltd.
This is despite the controversial 1,443 km pipeline, principally owned by TotalEnergies with a 62 percent stake, meant to evacuate crude from Western Uganda oilfields to the Indian port of Tanga in Tanzania, which has survived several suits filed in the region and in France and, despite the withdrawal of several would-be financiers, looks all set for completion later in the year, with the first oil exports due in October 2026.
Other owners of the pipeline are the governments of Uganda and Tanzania via the Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC – 15 percent) and the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC – 15 percent), and the Chinese multinational China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC – 8 percent).
The plaintiffs, who include project-affected persons (PAPs) from across Uganda, are buoyed by the support of the global campaign group Avaaz, which in February initiated a fundraising effort to help with costs of the suit, ahead of its expected commencement in May.
They claim that the pipeline will violate rights protected by the Ugandan Constitution, which gives every citizen the right to a clean and healthy environment.
The local farmers allege that the construction and operation of the pipeline will have a material impact on global temperatures with severe consequences both worldwide and in Uganda. Further, they alleged that the pipeline is in breach of EACOP Ltd’s own legal obligations under Uganda’s National Environment Act and National Climate Change Act.
Snaking through Uganda and Tanzania, it will tear through some of the planet’s “most wondrous ecosystems”, carving up elephant sanctuaries, protected forests, and more than 200 rivers.
In addition, the massive infrastructure, also the longest crude oil pipeline in Africa, will result in almost 400 million tonnes of emissions over its lifetime and have a major impact on climate change, they claim.
Besides, they argue that the emissions released by oil carried by the pipeline will ‘materially’ contribute to global warming and fear the impact this will have on them and their livelihoods, as well as on the environment and the health of Ugandans.
EACOP is expected to result in more than 372 million tonnes of CO₂e, or greenhouse gas, emissions—more than 58 times Uganda’s total annual emissions, they contend.
Uganda is particularly impacted by climate change, having already suffered from “record-breaking occurrences of floods, devastating and frequent droughts and erratic rainfall patterns”, according to a report sent by the Ugandan government to the UN, which will only increase as climate change worsens.
“The case is one of a growing number of legal claims seeking to hold global energy companies and infrastructure providers to account for the emissions resulting from their extraction of fossil fuels,” Leigh Day said in a statement.
“Our clients believe the EACOP pipeline will result in enormous damage to the global climate as well as severe damage to their local environment. The EACOP will lead to a huge amount of oil being burnt in a world where the UN has confirmed there are already far more fossil fuels slated for extraction than required if we are to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, said Leigh Day solicitor Joe Snape, who will represent the group.
The fact that the pipeline is operated and financed by a UK-registered company highlights the role UK corporates often have in fossil fuel extraction projects in the Global South, he added
He further noted, “Our clients are already living on the frontline of the climate crisis and argue this pipeline will only exacerbate the impact they, and other vulnerable communities around the world, experience on their lives and livelihoods. They are calling for the pipeline construction and operations to be halted to stop this damaging impact on the climate in Uganda and elsewhere around the world.”
While around a third (460 km) of the pipeline will run through the basin of Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake, local environmentalists warn that a spill or leak could potentially result in catastrophic effects for the lake, which is a vital water resource in the region and a significant source for the River Nile.
The pipeline will also run through and disturb important habitats and nature reserves, including Murchison Falls National Park, the Taala Forest Reserve, and the Bugoma Forest. The pipeline will reportedly disturb around 2,000 square kilometres of protected habitats, impacting rare and endangered species that inhabit them, such as Eastern Chimpanzees and African Elephants.
For its part, Avaaz said its fundraising effort will support the “groundbreaking” court helping expose the environmental abuses and climate devastation that this project will cause. Further, it will help to defend land rights for Indigenous and frontline communities and “continue the quest to protect life on Earth.”
“With help from Avaaz members, communities in East Africa have already fought this project through regional courts — but their case was dismissed on a technicality. This new lawsuit in the UK is the last remaining path to stopping this monster pipeline. Legal experts believe it offers a far better shot at a fair, independent hearing — with a real possibility of success,” the campaign noted.
The group promised to “stage an epic media stunt” around the launch of the court case, increasing pressure on insurance companies to walk away from the project, and support families in Uganda and Tanzania who are fighting evictions, providing cash assistance for food, medicine and other basic necessities.
The USD 5.6 billion project was initiated in 2016 amid delays, resistance, and scrutiny. Over the past two years, EACOP has accelerated, with infrastructure taking shape along its route and at its two key oil fields: Tilenga, awarded to TotalEnergies, and Kingfisher, awarded to CNOOC.
IPS UN Bureau Report
