Instead of seeking for finances for SGR Malaba-Kampala from Xi Jinp, Museveni chose to ask for $2.5 bln to facilitate EACOP at BRICS summit in J'burg

Instead of seeking for finances for SGR Malaba-Kampala from Xi Jinp, Museveni chose to ask for $2.5 bln to facilitate EACOP at BRICS summit in J'burg

Geza Ulole

Geza Ulole

JF-Expert Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2009
Posts
65,136
Reaction score
91,917
menu.png
MENU


Saturday, July 28, 2018 14:56 PM


Uganda, China agree on road, camera projects worth US$2.45bn
By Vision Reporter
Added 27th July 2018 08:02 PM
President Yoweri Museveni has said that a number of Government of Uganda funded contracts worth US$2.4bn have been given to Chinese companies especially on roads and recently security cameras worth US$120,259,686.

On Security and Defence, the President also said negotiations are underway on construction of forensic laboratory and two military artillery systems by Chinese companies.

The President was today speaking during a bilateral meeting he held with his Chinese Counterpart Xi Jinping at the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg South Africa.

On the economic relations, Museveni thanked President Xi Jinping for support towards the construction of the Karuma and Isimba dams which are on-going, noting that completion of the Karuma dam is at 79.2% while Isimba is at 80%.

“In the transport sector, we have agreed with a Chinese company called China Harbours Engineering Company (CHEC) on the Standard Gauge Railway. We are soon signing the agreement and together with CHEC, we will approach EXIM bank for financing,” he said.

Museveni informed his counterpart that in order to lay the pipeline from Kabale in Hoima (Uganda) to Tanga in Tanzania, there is a need to construct a number of roads including the Masindi-Tangi-Paraa-Bulisa road; Hoima-Butiaba-Wanseko road; Buhimba-Buramagi-Kakumiro road; Lusarira-Nkonge-Lumegere-Ssembabule; Masindi-Bisso-Kabaale-Kizirafumbi road; Hohwa-Nairongo-Kyaruseha road and Kabwoya-Buhuka and Ntoroko –Karugutu road; on this, negotiations have been going on between the Government of Uganda and some Chinese companies.

“A number of them have been identified, due diligence is going on which will lead to signing of the agreements,” he said.

In the private sector, the President said there are a number of Chinese Companies investing in Uganda.

He said a company called 'Guanzhou DongSong Energy Group, which is undertaking construction of the phosphate fertiliser, glass and sulfuric acid factory have been supported by the Government of China Insurance company which gave them insurance cover, which then facilitated them to go and acquire a loan from the Commercial Bank of China worthy $650M to invest in Uganda.

The President urged the Chinese government, for a government to government line of credit, which would support Uganda’s private companies to buy factory machine tools from China especially for processing of agricultural products and mineral beneficiations that the government can guarantee. Requests have also been made for Electrification for Industrial Parks. The cost is $182M for (Kapeka, Sukuru and Mbale Industrial Parks).

On his part, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that China is ready to deepen friendly and mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields with Uganda.

He commended President Museveni for his long-term dedication to the promotion of the development of China-Uganda relations as well as China-Africa relations.

Uganda, China agree on road, camera projects worth US$2.45bn

MY TAKE
For those that don't belive Kenya is on its own with her tembo mweupe SGR.
 
Sasa kidoogo, ndio naanza kuamini Ug watapitisha sgr yao through Tz, habari mbaya sana hii kwa watani, nzuri sana kwetu.
 
So Uganda according to wank fest report is about to generate more Elecricity than Tanzagiza mind you UG is landlocked. Again with the stalled SGR, how do you people expect to connect with UG having been unable to do Dar Moro route?
 
BUSINESS
INSIDE STORY: Why Kasingye Left Shs 2.3bn SGR Project
930cfb4a8d21bc57243f55a559108bad

ByKim Aine
Posted on July 23, 2018
Engineer-Kasingye-Kyamugambi.jpg

ENGINEER KASINGYE KYAMUGAMBI

Recently, Mr Kasingye Kyamugambi quietly left his position as Coordinator of Uganda’s much-anticipated Standard Gauge Railway project.

Kyamugambi has since returned to private practice where he will consult for another big infrastructure project.

Officials told ChimpReports on Monday that Kyamugambi wrote to President Museveni to be relieved of his position, a request the head-of-state granted.

Museveni responded by appointing Perez Wamburu, the former chief Engineer at Uganda Railways Corporation (URC), to replace Kyamugambi.

Wamburu has since taken charge of the SGR. The handover ceremony was held in Kampala recently at a low-key ceremony.
Contacted, Kyamugambi confirmed his departure. “It’s true, I left.”

He chose not to participate in any discussion on SGR.

But we understand Kyamugambi’s exit followed a bitter war at the Works Ministry with lobbyists and senior government officials insisting that the cost of the SGR was inflated by over $600m.
Map-showing-where-the-SGR-will-pass-on-the-Malaba-Kampala-route.jpg

Map showing where the SGR will pass on the Malaba-Kampala route

Government signed a contract with China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) to construct the Eastern Route (Malaba-Kampala) at a cost of $2.3bn.

The contract price for the Eastern route included locomotives and rolling.

This investigative website understands that a Committee was established to study the cost of the highly billed project.

Wamburu, Prof Albert Rugumayo, Prof Umar Bagampadde and Daudi Murungi wrote and presented a report that approved the designs and costs of the project.

At the time, lobbyists assured President Museveni that a Turkish company known as Yapı Merkezi could do the project at a cheaper cost.

When Wamburu was appointed on another team for a fresh study of the costs, he observed that the project was inflated. This new team was headed by Rosemary Tibiwa, a civil engineer.

Tibiwa, a Commissioner in charge of Transport at the Works Ministry, is said to lack qualifications in transport economics and was on interdiction for three years.

She also had applied for a job at the SGR but was not shortlisted due to lack of qualifications. Incidentally, her cousin brother Nathan Ndhabangi had been terminated from SGR over suspected fraud.

It’s understood Kyamugambi was instructed to find ways of reducing the cost of the railway project by $600m.

The terms were that either CHEC had to reduce the cost by $600m or let Yapi take the lucrative job.

Realising that such a move would compromise the quality of the project, Kyamugambi chose “integrity over a job” and quit.

Termination
Contacts at SGR, who spoke on condition of anonymity as this is a sensitive matter, said Kyamugambi gave several reasons in defence of the CHEC contract but Eng Badru Kiggundu’s team (presidential appointee to supervise the project), insisted on termination.

Kiggundu’s team are in favour of Yapi which in 2017 signed a $1.9 billion contract to design and construct a 336-km (208-mile) standard gauge high-speed railway linking Morogoro and Makutupora in Tanzania
In his brief, Kyamugambi argued that Uganda’s cost is inclusive of station buildings, wagons, locomotives, rolling stock, electrification and Inland Container Depots (ICDs).

The cost per route Km (excluding locomotives) would be $7.3m/KM for Uganda while Tanzania would part with $5M/KM.

Due to high investment costs in railways, construction of a cheap railway means there will be high maintenance costs.

Kyamugambi’s team was in favour of the Chinese’s railway system due to low maintenance costs.

For AREMA, railway standards are at $150,000 per kilometer per year while Chinese standards maintenance costs are at $40,000.

The team also pointed out Uganda’s swampy terrain needed more embankments and bridges hence the higher cost.

Impression-of-the-proposed-Nile-SGR-Super-Bridge.-The-bridge-will-be-1km-long-axle-loading-27.5-tones-per-axle-with-no-pillarspiers-in-water-making-it-a-River-friendly-infrastructure.jpg

Impression of the proposed Nile SGR Super Bridge. The bridge will be 1km long, axle loading 27.5 tones per axle with no pillarspiers in water

It remains unclear if Uganda will go ahead to terminate CHEC’s contract as that would mean looking elsewhere for funding.
Uganda is expected to borrow 85 percent from Exim Bank and raise 15 percent locally to finance the SGR project.

But the Turks could as well raise the funding needed for the construction works.
Uganda is currently struggling to connect with international markets due to poor infrastructure.

The railway is planned to enhance Uganda’s global competitiveness by providing a seamless, reliable, safe and efficient transport to transport exports to the sea and attract foreign direct investment.

To attract multinational corporations to create thousands of jobs, Uganda needs a superb mode of transport that would see the manufacturer transport products to the Indian Ocean in a matter of hours.

https://chimpreports.com/inside-story-why-kasingye-left-shs-2-3bn-sgr-project/
 
mwaswast said:
So Uganda according to wank fest report is about to generate more Elecricity than Tanzagiza mind you UG is landlocked. Again with the stalled SGR, how do you people expect to connect with UG having been unable to do Dar Moro route?
Click to expand...
Wacha wivu it's ohk if Uganda is to have more power than us! Be worried the Turkish r schooling u people corruption is poison. I have a strong feeling they will snatch the project as Uganda is determined to have electrifled SGR at a reasonable just like Rwanda.
 
Aisee. Bado kenya hamjaona tu kuwa dunia inawatenga!?
 
Geza Ulole said:
Wacha wivu it's ohk if Uganda is to have more power than us! Be worried the Turkish r schooling u people corruption is poison. I have a strong feeling they will snatch the project as Uganda is determined to have electrifled SGR at a reasonable just like Rwanda.
Click to expand...
Wivu na hata mita moja ya reli hamjatandaza? Si hata mfike Morogoro muanze kupayakua.
Eti you've got a strong feeling? Emotions are for the weak brained Ujamaa die hards.
 
mwaswast said:
Wivu na hata mita moja ya reli hamjatandaza? Si hata mfike Morogoro muanze kupayakua.
Eti you've got a strong feeling? Emotions are for the weak brained Ujamaa die hards.
Click to expand...
This stroke of you acting a fool is no longer working.. try acting dead!
 
Hoshea said:
Sasa kidoogo, ndio naanza kuamini Ug watapitisha sgr yao through Tz, habari mbaya sana hii kwa watani, nzuri sana kwetu.
Click to expand...
Uganda aims for a a China Class 1 rail.
Tanzania is using AREMA.
A standard so incompatible that they might as well connect with your metre gauge.
Keep dreaming.
Kenya and Uganda are linking their rails together as they are of the same standard and the distance is shorter anyway.
 
GERALD710 said:
Uganda aims for a a China Class 1 rail.
Tanzania is using AREMA.
A standard so incompatible that they might as well connect with your metre gauge.
Keep dreaming.
Kenya and Uganda are linking their rails together as they are of the same standard and the distance is shorter anyway.
Click to expand...

Do you mean a North American railway industry group, The American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA)?
 
GERALD710 said:
Uganda aims for a a China Class 1 rail.
Tanzania is using AREMA.
A standard so incompatible that they might as well connect with your metre gauge.
Keep dreaming.
Kenya and Uganda are linking their rails together as they are of the same standard and the distance is shorter anyway.
Click to expand...

Arema is just civil works.

Tanzania rail is designed to the latest standards.

China class 1 kumbe ni moshi!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Community

Regional Communities

Back
Top Bottom
Menu
Forums
New posts
Log in
Register