With estimated recoverable gas resources of around 57 trillion cubic feet (tcf), Tanzania will feature as part of an East African regional spotlight at Invest in African Energy (IAE) 2024.

 

Since discovering large volumes of offshore gas, Tanzania has initiated plans to become a major LNG exporter. The country’s flagship Tanzania LNG project – set to process gas from fields operated by Equinor, Shell and ExxonMobil, producing 10 million metric tonnes per year – is awaiting the signing of a host government agreement that would enable the start of development. 

 

Shell’s Blocks 1 and 4 have an estimated 16 tcf of gas in place, while Equinor’s Block 2 has yielded nine discoveries with more than 20 tcf of estimated reserves. Last November, the governments of Tanzania and Uganda signed an agreement to undertake a feasibility study for the construction of a pipeline linking Tazania’s gas fields to Uganda.

 

Exclusive forum

Organised by Energy Capital & Power, IAE 2024 is an exclusive forum designed to facilitate investment between African energy markets and global investors. Taking place from May 14 to 15, 2024 in Paris, the event offers delegates two days of intensive engagement with industry experts, project developers, investors and policymakers. 

 

Tanzania has emerged as a regional leader in LPG distribution, owing to its strategic location on the Indian Ocean and flagship Kigamboni LPG Terminal, which imports LPG from the Middle East and delivers it by truck to the wider region. 

 

Tanzania’s Taifa Gas is currently leading construction of a $100-million LPG facility in northern Zambia, in partnership with Zambia’s Delta Marimba. Last November, the country also launched its first compressed natural gas filling station and conversion centre in Dar es Salaam, developed by TAQA Dalbit – a joint venture between TAQA Arabia and JCG Oil & Gas.

 

Licensing round

Tanzania is expected to launch its fifth oil and gas licensing round by June 2024, with licenses to be awarded by December of the same year. While the details have yet to be disclosed, 26 oil and gas blocks have been initially allocated for tender, including 15 onshore and 11 offshore blocks. 

 

Representing the country’s first bid round in over a decade, the licensing round aims to accelerate foreign investment in the country’s upstream sector and showcase its highly prospective acreage. 

 

So far, Chinese national oil company CNOOC is leading exploration in the country – in collaboration with Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation – and is conducting seismic surveys in deepwater blocks located nearby gas discoveries made by Shell, Equinor and ExxonMobil.--TradeArabia News Service