TRA mobilises 30bn/- in taxes, levy claims as EACOP starts

By Guardian Correspondent , The Guardian
Published at 10:29 AM Mar 20 2024
Ambassador Ombeni Sefue, the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) board chairman
Photo: Guardian Correspondent
Ambassador Ombeni Sefue, the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) board chairman

A TOTAL of 30bn/- in taxes and levies has been collected by the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) from projects and activities tied with the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project.

Ambassador Ombeni Sefue, the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) board chairman, made this observation here yesterday as members of the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly visited the EACOP site to inspect project progress.

He stated that the project had started to bear fruits with the significant revenues, while already 5,000 youths in the pipeline route areas are benefiting from the project through direct jobs and indirect occupations.

Business people were obtaining small tenders connected with the oil delivery chain, he said, noting that the project has reached 26 percent of construction, likely to be completed in two years.

He appealed to the public to “Let me advise fellow Tanzanians to tap the opportunities in this project as per the Local Content Policy, so those who meet the required criteria should chip in and start benefiting from the project, we have direct and indirect opportunities,” he said.

He said the EACOP project has a lot of opportunities as even without securing direct jobs, people can still initiate businesses where project sites are the targeted outlets.

Deus Sanga (Kwela), the committee chairman, expressed satisfaction with the progress of the project, commending the government for disbursing 87 percent of its expected capital contribution, paying out 268bn/- out of 308bn/-.

The committee decided to visit the project site owing to concern for billions of shillings invested by the government for its execution, he said, not providing the tie

Last December, EACOP managers announced the arrival of a shipment of 100km of line pipes at the port of Dar es Salaam, ready for starting the construction phase for the massive cross-border project.

The pipeline will be built across 1443km of land from Hoima in western Uganda to the marine storage terminal of Tanga port, with 20 percent (296km) traversing Uganda and 80 percent (1147km) traversing Tanzania. It cuts through eight regions, 24 districts and 184 villages, officials affirm.

EACOP will transport crude oil from the Lake Albert region of Uganda to the Chongoleani peninsula to be shipped to world markets, a major inward investment for the East African Community (EAC) partner states.