This archive report was first published on 11 September 2019.
Kenya's maiden crude oil export to Malaysia in August marked a significant milestone, but it has also raised concerns about transparency in the Turkana oil project.
President Uhuru Kenyatta had earlier announced that Kenya had struck a deal with an oil exporter, with Petroleum Principal Secretary Andrew Kamau revealing that Chinese State-owned ChemChina (UK) Ltd had won the bid to lift the Turkana oil.
Tullow Oil, the mining company in charge of the Turkana Project, estimates that Kenya's fields in Turkana hold up to 560 million barrels of oil and expects to produce up to 100,000 barrels per day from 2022.
However, the Ministry of Petroleum and Mining had stated that the Government would not publish the terms of engagement with Tullow Oil and its joint venture partners in the Project, sparking accusations of violating the Constitution and breeding mistrust.
According to the Constitution and the Access to Information Act, 2016, details of such projects must be disclosed, and private entities involved in the extraction of natural resources are required to disclose any information on such extraction.
Therefore, extractive contracts should not be crafted with confidentiality clauses to restrict access to information by citizens, and the Government should disclose information on such contracts, including the benefit sharing agreements, environmental impact assessment, and the mineral agreements.
This will be in line with the Government's commitment under the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and help prevent the 'oil curse' seen globally.
