A regional court has dismissed a petition seeking to stop the construction of a controversial $4bn (£3.1bn) crude oil pipeline from Uganda to Tanzania.

The East African Court of Justice (EACJ) on Wednesday ruled that the case was filed too late and was therefore time-barred and beyond its jurisdiction.

The 1,443km (896-mile) East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (Eacop), which is being constructed by the Ugandan and Tanzanian governments along with TotalEnergies and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has faced pushback from local communities and rights and environmental groups.

The groups say the project is displacing communities from their land, desecrating graves along the pipeline route and causing environmental harm.

“This judgement marks a continuation of how the global north and various government institutions in Africa are blind to the destruction of the environment and the impact oil and gas has on the climate,” civil society group Natural Justice said in a statement.

Natural Justice and the other three civil society organisations that filed the case in 2020 said they would appeal against the decision.