Global consulting engineering firm SMEC, part of the Surbana Jurong Group, was engaged by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development of Uganda to develop a Master Plan for an Oil and Gas Industrial Park in Kabaale, western Uganda.

As a result of the discovery of oil in the region, and the need to maximise value from the resource, the Government of Uganda has allocated approximately 3 000 Ha of land for the project, making it one of the largest industrial parks in the world.

The Industrial Park is intended to form part of a new industrial city encompassing: an oil and gas refinery; energy, petrochemical and other strategic industries; an international airport; commercial and administrative areas; health and education facilities; residential neighbourhoods; public spaces; free zone, oil and gas export hub, and green areas.

“The park will have first class facilities, utilities and advanced security built to the most up to date standards and practices”, explains Godfrey Hatejeka, SMEC’s Utilities Engineer, Uganda. “All this will be centrally controlled with a SCADA system”. Hatejeka has been responsible for facilitating meetings between stakeholders and government bodies, co-ordinating project experts both local and international, and ensuring adherence to the scope of the contract and SMEC reporting standards.

During construction the refinery will create approximately 5 000 jobs, and approximately 650 jobs during operation. When operating at full capacity, the Park will provide over 30 000 direct jobs and about the same number of indirect jobs.

The Industrial Park will contribute to the overall development of the Ugandan economy and also facilitate the growth of the neighbouring trading centres like Hoima, Kabaale, Buseruka, Kaseeta, Kataba and others by providing support services to the Park.

“Being the first project of this nature in Uganda specifically, and East Africa as a whole”, says Hatejeka “the Government of Uganda relied substantially on SMEC expertise for setting the project key performance parameters and training its staff on implementing this mega investment”.

He concludes, “With SMEC’s global service capability the project was executed within the contract period and budget parameters, to the satisfaction of the client”.

About SMEC:

SMEC is a global consulting engineering firm providing high-quality, professional services on major infrastructure projects. SMEC has joined forces with Surbana Jurong, Asia’s consultancy powerhouse in the urban, infrastructure and management advisory sectors. This partnership provides a talent pool of 13 500+ dedicated people working across a network of 120+ offices in 40+ countries throughout Asia, Australasia, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas. SMEC’s strength in major infrastructure projects, coupled with Surbana Jurong’s expertise in urban planning, industrial development and management advisory services, enables us to provide critical value-chain services to clients around the world

Workers at Hoima International Airport construction site in Kabaale, Hoima district have laid down tools to protest nonpayment of salaries for two months.

Construction of the airport is being undertaken by SBC Uganda in collaboration with Colas, a UK based firm.

The workers are also protesting the illegal dismissal of their friends and the harsh working environment they say they’re being subjected to by the SBC management.

The strike come barely two weeks after workers of Shandong Taikai Power Engineering Company limited, which was contracted to erect a power line from Fort Portal to Hoima also staged a strike and blocked the Hoima Kaiso Tonya road.

They also accused their bosses of nonpayment of their salary.  The SBC management couldn’t be reached for a comment by the time of filing this story.

Hoima International Airport is one of the key projects being undertaken by government in preparation for oil production in the oil rich Albertine region.
 
Julius Hakiiza, the Albertine police region spokesperson, says they deployed at construction site to block workers from destroying property.

Once completed as scheduled in 2020, Hoima International Airport will be Uganda’s second international airport after Entebbe.

The project is financed by Shs 1.3 trillion loan borrowed from the United Kingdom Export Finance (€270.2 million) and from Standard Chartered bank of London (€37.1 million) for the construction of the airport.

Construction of a special purpose airport to facilitate the delivery of heavy, long and sensitive equipment to be utilized in Uganda’s planned oil refinery and other oil related facilities is underway in Hoima, close to Lake Albert.

The proposed Kabaale International Airport, to be built on 174.2 acres of land within the proposed refinery, is expected to be in operation by 2021.

When completed, it would be the country’s second international airport, after Entebbe International Airport. The airport is located in Kabaale Parish, Buseruka sub-county, Hoima District, near the Kaiso-Tonya oil fields and the Uganda Oil Refinery.

Phase 1 will include an airport servicing cargo aircraft and passenger aircraft for the construction and operation of the refinery and oil fields.

The first phase of the project is expected to last between 17-24 months covering construction of a Runway (which can handle big and heavy aircraft), Taxiway, Apron, multi-purpose Terminal Building for Cargo and Passengers, Fire Station, Car Park, Access Road, Perimeter fence and Electrical Centre, among other facilities.

In the medium and the long-term the airport will undergo further development to function as Uganda’s second international airport servicing both cargo and passenger traffic.

The airport will be designed to support the operation of large aircraft like the AN124 and Boeing 747- 800 as well as all types of wide body and medium sized passenger and cargo aircraft.

The Masterplan for Kabaale International Airport in Hoima was completed last year and a 3 year plan for its development in liaison with the Ministry of Works and Transport and other stakeholders has started.

Bush clearing, road construction starts

Bush clearing, construction of access roads and fencing off the 29 sq. km that the airport will occupy have started, according to a team of East African Business Week that visited the site in May, 2018.

Ministry officials visit the site (top), and above, clearing of the ground has started in Kabaale. PHOTO EAST AFRICAN BUSINESS WEEK & MOWT Uganda

“The runway, measuring 3.5km long and 75m wide,  will be provisionally opened in 2020 to allow for the landing of Antonovs and Boeing 777s that will carry the oil refinery fleets and other equipment,” Mihail Gorachinov the Senior Development Manager SBI told DailyNewsUg . The contractors for the airport are SBC/SBI Llodys British International.

Phase II will involve further development of the airport to service increased commercial passenger flights and cargo flights for the fish and flower export industry. These include for instance expansion of passenger and cargo terminals, a new parallel taxiway and expansion of apron.

With the anticipated growth of the oil industry in the region, the airport on completion will additionally facilitate the rising movement of people to and from the region and grow the area’s tourism potential given the many tourist attractions in the vicinity.

Dr. Micheal Nkambo Mugerwa, the General Manager Uganda National Oil Company who are overseeing the Airport Development works together with the ministry of Works and Transport told  DailyNewsUg recently that the airport would be a large international airport capable of handling large passenger and cargo aircraft, sufficient to carry the equipment and staff to develop the Uganda Oil Refinery and the oilfields.

To fund the project, in January 2018, the UK lenders Standard Chartered Bank with guarantees from the United Kingdom Export Finance, secured €307 million.

In February 2018, Shikun & Binui, a construction firm based in Israel were picked to construct this airport, at a cost of US$309 million. The construction will be undertaken by Solel Boneh International Holdings (SBI), the international arm of Shikun & Binui.

A history of Oil in Uganda

Oil exploration has been on-going in the Albertine Graben since the 1920’s. Commercially viable oil and gas deposits were discovered in the Albertine Graben in Western Uganda (Sensitivity Atlas for the Albertine Graben, 2010).  The discoveries are in the area east of Lake Albert and the Nile Delta north of Lake Albert in Hoima, Buliisa and Nwoya Districts.

Oil exploration and production activities so far indicate that the oil potential in this area is promising. For example, out of the 34 oil and gas wells that have been drilled, only 2 have been found without oil. Furthermore, the productivity prospects in the area are reasonably high; for instance the buffalo prospect alone can produce 400 million barrels of oil with estimated revenue 15 times the Uganda’s current expenditure.

The estimated reserves in the Albertine Graben as a whole are about 2 billion barrels. The size of the reserves is enough to sustain production for 20 years (Sensitivity Atlas for the Albertine Graben, 2010).

A pipeline to Tanga on the Indian Ocean coast from Hoima has also been agreed between Uganda and Tanzania.

The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) is 1,445 kilometres in length, of which 296 kilometres (184 mi) (21 percent) is in Uganda and 1,149 kilometres (714 mi) (79 percent) in Tanzania.

The pipeline will measure 24 inches (61 cm) in diameter and will be insulated and heated and is expected to cost US$3.55 billion.

Case for an airport

It against this background that a Uganda refinery study (MEMD 2010) was carried out to establish the feasibility of constructing a refinery in Uganda to facilitate utilization of the country’s oil and gas resources. The study recommended that a refinery be constructed close to the oil fields to avoid lengthy and costly pipelines and to optimize the value accruing out of the resources.

The study further recommended, among the required infrastructure, the development of an aircraft runway local to the refinery location, capable of accommodating large cargo airplanes with carrying capacity of 112 – 250 tonnes and with ability to accommodate take-off runs of at least 3,500m.

The Government of Uganda (GoU), represented by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (MEMD) and through the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) as the implementing agency supported by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), proposed to construct an airport in Hoima District

CAA commissions high tech X-ray machines to boost Airport security

CAA Managing Director, Dr. David Kakuba (fourth left) commissions the machines at Entebbe International Airport. Looking on is Ag. Director Airports and Aviation Security, Eng. Ayub Sooma (centre) , Mrs. Mary Odido and Airport staff.

Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)’s commitment towards improving the security and safety of passengers and other users of Entebe International Airport, crew got a boost with the commissioning of four new x–ray machines at the Airport on Wednesday, January 9, 2019.

The new equipment is to enhance efforts to improve on processes and systems that will better facilitate safety and security for airport users.

Commissioning the new X-ray machines, the CAA Managing Director, Dr. David Mpango Kakuba said the equipment which cost Uganda shillings three billion four hundred thousand is deployed at the cargo centre, luggage sorting area, customs and at the VVIP terminal.

“Security management is key to CAA these machines are state-of-the-art and provide us with a new and additional line of safety and security for our passengers, against terrorist threats and the importation or export of contraband and illegal items into and out of Uganda,” said Dr. Kakuba.

Dr. Kakuba said that the Xray machines will beef up and close any security gaps at the airport.

“The efficiency of any airport is measured by the time the passenger spends in the terminal. The equipment is certainly going to enhance efficiency and reduce on the time passengers spend while going through the Airport,” he emphasized.

Dr. Kakuba applauded the contractor M/s Spectra International Limited for timely delivery of equipment that met the prescribed specifications.

The Ag. Director of Airports and Aviation Security, Eng. Ayub Sooma said that the equipment will reduce on the queues at peak time at the arrival area and also facilitate screening of passengers in transit.

He said that the project had been successfully completed with good partnership with the contractor.

The Chief of the Joint Security Operations (CJSO), ACP James Ruhweza said that the equipment was a timely delivery as Uganda prepares for the G77 summit in December, 2019.  Ruhweza cautioned the security agents at the airport not to be complacent and asked the users of the equipment to avoid underutilization of the equipment.

The Manager Aviation Security, Mr. Emmanuel Barungi gave a report of the contract and commended the quality of the equipment as per the report for the factory acceptance tests.

The CEO for M/s Spectra International Limited, Mrs. Maria Odido thanked CAA for the good project supervision and teamwork by the technical team and management. She said that her company will provide adequate training to the users. Odida urged CAA to protect and guard the machines from being damaged to ensure value for money spent.

CAA developed a 20 year National Civil Aviation Master Plan (2014-2033) in line with Uganda’s Vision 2040 to upgrade and expand Entebbe International Airport to meet the growing passenger needs and expectations and the future demands of existing and potential operators.