The Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) has taken a decisive stride toward securing its energy future and cultivating homegrown technical leadership by signing a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the global energy technology leader, Baker Hughes.
This strategic partnership is anchored around the co-development and operationalisation of UNOC’s Centre of Excellence for Research, Training, and Innovation.
The MOU was recently signed between the UNOC Chief Executive Officer, Ms Proscovia Nabbanja, and a technical team from Baker Hughes led by Ahmed Moghal, the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
Far more than a mere agreement, the MOU is a bold statement of intent: Uganda is transitioning from a passive participant to an active architect of its industrial future within the global energy ecosystem.
Visionary Bridge to Independence and UNOC’s 2030 Goal
According to Ms. Nabbanja, this partnership “marks a major step towards UNOC’s 2030 ambition to become an independent operator in the oil and gas industry, equipping Ugandans with world-class skills and positioning the company as a regional leader in energy innovation.”
The partnership with Baker Hughes provides the crucial technical depth and global experience needed to realise this vision.
The Centre of Excellence:
The newly established Centre stands as a visionary bridge designed to facilitate three critical functions:
Capacity Development: Equipping Ugandans with world-class technical skills in high-value domains, moving away from relying on outsourced critical competencies.
Knowledge Creation: Fostering specialised research and innovation across the energy value chain.
Industrial Transformation: Ensuring that the skills and knowledge generated translate directly into sustainable industrial practice and advanced technical service delivery by UNOC.
By combining UNOC’s national mandate with Baker Hughes’ vast global technical depth, the partnership represents a powerful fusion of local ambition with international best practice, a model that is set to redefine Africa’s participation in the global oil and gas value chain.
SDGs and Regional Leadership
The strategic alignment of this MOU extends beyond the immediate oil and gas sector, positioning UNOC as a regional catalyst for broader energy sector evolution as follows:
Regional Innovation Hub
By integrating research, innovation, and technical excellence, UNOC is positioned to serve as a regional hub for cross-sector collaboration. This includes fields ranging from petroleum engineering and digital energy systems to renewables and environmental stewardship.
Global Alignment
The initiative aligns seamlessly with key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure). This underscores the critical role of human capital development, technology transfer, and responsible resource management in shaping Africa’s energy sovereignty.
In essence, the partnership is about generating value that lasts for generations, ensuring that Uganda not only utilises its natural resources but also empowers its citizens to lead the next frontier of energy innovation, responsibly and sustainably.
This move strengthens UNOC’s ability to deliver advanced technical services and build a resilient national energy operator capable of redefining Africa’s role in the global energy market.