Official Statement Regarding the Alleged Acquisition of UNOC by Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited
Our attention has been drawn to documents circulating on social and print media, originating from Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited as resolutions made by the Board of Directors of Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited (dated 3rd October 2023) to initiate a formal acquisition intention to Uganda National Oil Company Limited (UNOC). The documents further indicate that Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited has been authorized by its Board to draft documents required for the acquisition of UNOC including undertaking due diligence, negotiating the acquisition, and signing of transaction documents (that would be approved by the relevant departments of the Ugandan Government) among others.
We wish to inform the public that UNOC was established under Section 42 of the Petroleum (Exploration, Development and Production) Act and Section 7 of the Petroleum (Refining, Conversion, Transmission and Midstream Storage) Act, both of 2013. It was incorporated under the Companies Act of 2012 as a limited liability company wholly owned by the Government of Uganda with the Minister of Energy and Mineral Development holding 51% shares and the Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development holding 49% shares. The Company’s overall function is to manage the State’s commercial interests in the petroleum sub-sector.
The commercial participating interests and shareholding levels of UNOC in the various oil and gas projects across the petroleum value chain have been established by legislation through Acts of Parliament and/or approval of Cabinet. Therefore, any assignment or transfer of UNOC’s participating interests and shareholdings to another entity can only be considered through the relevant approvals and legal instruments that established UNOC.
UNOC would like to categorically state that its Shareholders, Board of Directors, and Management have not at any time considered any offer from Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited to acquire UNOC or its commercial participating interests in the oil and gas projects.
UNOC hereby strongly disassociates itself from the alleged transaction by Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited and considers the claims to be a fraud done in bad faith with the intention to discredit the Government of Uganda and damage the reputation of UNOC. We wish to advise the public to disregard the claims made by Peace Oil and Gas Company Limited, and that UNOC has issued fraud alerts on its social media platforms to this effect.
UNOC is committed to transparency, accountability, and the highest ethical standards and any malicious claims or criminal acts are treated seriously and will be handled by the appropriate measures they deserve.
MANAGEMENT
For more information contact:
Sarah Birungi Banage
Head of Corporate Affairs
UGANDA NATIONAL OIL COMPANY LIMITED