By Deep Earth
EnviroServ, a waste management services company, has received seven specialist trucks to help in the transportation of both liquid and solid oil waste that will be generated during drilling activities at the Tilenga oilfields.
The seven Renault branded trucks that were handed over on Thursday are part of the 34 trucks – all valued at about $10 million – that EnviroServ ordered from Victoria Motors, a vehicle dealership in Kampala.
TotalEnergies, the operators of the Tilenga oil project, awarded EnviroServ the five-year $89 million waste management contract in April 2022 following the taking of the final investment decision (FID) for the construction of the crude oil export pipeline (EACOP) and the development of the Tilenga and Kingfisher oilfields.
“We are happy to receive the first batch of the trucks as we continue our preparations to manage the oil waste once drilling commences,” said Albert Kyaligonza, EnviroServ’s project engineer.
TotalEnergies’ first rig is currently being shipped to Uganda, with test drills planned for December.
Tilenga is found in the districts of Buliisa and Nwoya while the EnviroServ treatment and disposal plant is located further away in Nyamasoga, Kabaale, Hoima district.
Some of Uganda’s oil is located in an environmentally-sensitive area which hosts the Murchison Falls National Park, hence the need to safely handle, transport and treat the oil waste.
Two months ago, the European Parliament called for Uganda’s oil projects to be delayed over human rights and environmental concerns.
“Our treatment facility has the capacity to adequately manage all the oil waste and any other waste that will be generated from whatever activities in the oilfields,” Kyaligonza said.
Victoria Motors has since 2013 sourced, supplied and maintained vehicles and equipment for EnviroServ.
Dickson Mwesigwa, the company’s Sales and Marketing Manager, says the trucks were custom-tailored to their clients’ needs with all the required features to safely handle both solid and liquid oil waste.
“Driver training will commence on November 14, 2022 before the trucks are deployed. This is part of the maintenance services we offer to ensure the vehicles are in perfect working condition over a long period,” he said.
The truck drivers are provided by Epsilon, EnviroServ’s transportation partner.
The Epsilon drivers (squatting) pose with Victoria Motors and EnviroServ executives
The next consignment of 12 trucks are scheduled to arrive in two months’ time, Mwesigwa said.
Activities in the oil and gas industry have been ramped up as Uganda tries to get to First Oil by April 2025.
Over $15 billion is expected to be invested in the development phase before the country starts producing oil.
Mwesigwa believes such investments will go a long way in helping Uganda’s economy recover from the after-effects of the Covid-19 lockdown and the Russia-Ukraine war.
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