GAS is one of the four fundamental
states of matter. A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms. And what
distinguishes a gas from liquids or solids is the vast separation of the
individual gas practicles.
Tanzania drew international attention this year by almost trebling its
appraisal of its natural gas reserves. Now confirmed at 43 Trillion Cubic feet
(TCF), they are valued around $430 billion, .
Mtwara region is now on the topic due to the discovery of gas.
Mtwara
region is one of Tanzanians 30 adiminstrative regions. According to the 2012
national census, this Region had a population of 1,270,854.
Exploration for oil and gas began in 1952
in Tanzania. To date, 53 wells have been drilled to completion and six more are
in varying drilling stages. This drilling activity has led to the discovery
of nine gas fields, two of which are currently
in commercial production.
The import of heavy equipment for oil In
collaboration with some operators, the Government is upgrading the Mtwara port
to international standards in order to accommodate oil and gas equipment.
The Government is also planning to convert
the Mtwara port into a free port and supply base for oil and gas equipment.
The Government is also investing into gas
pipeline infrastructure to provide producers with access to the local market
and export opportunities to neighboring countries.
The Government funded the existing 248
km-long pipeline from Songo Songo to Dar es Salaam (12-inch 25 km Songo
It is
expected that Tanzania’s natural resources will rise to 200 trillion cubic feet
after the next two years.
Already Terms of agrrements with investors
are spelt out in the model Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) of 2004 and in
the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Act of 1980.
The Production sharing agreements are
signed between the investors and Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation
(TPDC), which is a public corporation.
Tanzanian
government employees traveled to China to sign a loan agreement for $1.2
billion with Chinese government-owned Export-Import Bank, Tanzania's
The loan
will fund the construction of a 532-kilometre natural gas pipeline between
Mnazi Bay in Mtwara and Dar es Salaam. The project will build a new 24- to
36-inch pipeline between Mnazi Bay and Somanga, and expand the existing
pipeline between Somanga and Dar es Salaam from 16 inches to 36 inches. The
pipelines will double capacity, transporting 210 million cubic feet of gas per
day.
It is said
that Natural gas provides 35% of the
country's electricity,
British gas
firm BG Group, Norway's Statoil, Brazil's Petrobras, Royal
Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil Corp are among companies already
operating in Tanzania.
The country plans to offer seven deep offshore blocks
and one onshore block in October for oil and gas
exploration, with the potential of making more high-impact gas
finds, while three Chinese companies since July 21st this year they start construction of a 512-kilometre pipeline
from Mtwara to Dar es Salaam,.
According to
one of the government statement, Tanzania current demand is 720 megawatts per
day. Therefore, by generating 3,920 megawatts through domestic gas reserves,
the country will have a surplus of more than 3,000 megawatts to be used for
export or to develop new industries,
It says the
project is likely to boost the economy, as generating employment as well
But after
all this process the people of mtwara reacted by saying that, government has
consistently neglected regions in southern Tanzania, leaving them in abject
poverty, they said they had no roads, schools, hospitals or access to water,
and employment is nightmare. Mtwara is a symbol of poverty in our
country." One qouted.
"Last
year, God decided to bless our neglected region by giving us gas," he
said. "Ironically, the government comes to befriend us, but maintains the
poverty line by transporting our gas to Dar es Salaam. In capital letters we
say 'no' to this."they claimed.
In order to
generate employment and distribute the national wealth equitably, the
government should build infrastructure to convert the gas into electricity in
Mtwara and then transport it to other parts of the country, this is what
majority belive.
Also it is
said that, Developing sectors and creating jobs in Mtwara and other regions
would ease the pressure of migrants who head to Dar es Salaam in search of jobs.
But Government defend its
position by saying the entire
country has benefitted from resources found in Tanzania's regions, thus 16%
of the gas extracted in Mtwara would go to Dar es Salaam, with the remainder to
stay in Mtwara for various uses, including for export by sea.
