Overview
- In early July 2026 four Ugandan farmers, represented by Leigh Day and supported by Avaaz, filed a High Court claim in London seeking remedies including an injunction to stop oil flowing through EACOP.
- The claim asks the English court to apply Ugandan constitutional rights, the National Environment Act and the National Climate Change Act to EACOP Ltd because the company is incorporated in the UK, making jurisdiction the first legal question the court will decide.
- The plaintiffs say construction has already harmed livelihoods and water sources, citing concrete examples such as the loss of farmland and a damaged community spring that left residents with muddy water.
- EACOP is more than 90% complete and led by TotalEnergies, which denies the alleged harms and says it has taken measures to mitigate impacts, but the project faces commercial strain after many banks and insurers refused involvement.
- Campaigners and lawyers call the case a potential global test for holding foreign‑registered fossil fuel companies to host‑country environmental law, which could affect other megaprojects and the long‑term prospects for Uganda’s planned oil exports.