Tanzania’s current natural gas
reserves now stand at about 55 trillion cubic feet (tcf) following new
deep sea discoveries off its southern coast. According to the East
African nation’s energy minister, George Simbachawene, natural gas
resources discovered in the country increased by 18 percent to 55.08
tcf in April 2015, from 46.5 tcf in June 2014.
The United Republic of Tanzania has the
second largest economy in East Africa, and the Twelfth largest in
Africa. A great contributor to this is its agricultural sector, which
accounts for 24.5 percent of the country’s GDP, 85 percent of exports
and over half of the employed workforce.
The country had relied heavily on this
sector to drive its economy, but the emergence of natural gas is
expected to change that narrative.
Commercial production is scheduled to
begin in September this year and expectations are high that the new
commodity will rival the dominance of agriculture and enhance living
conditions.
About 35 percent of Tanzanians currently
live in poverty, making the news that gas discoveries could provide a
similar number of jobs to agriculture mouthwatering. Sospeter Muhongo, Tanzania’s former Minister of Energy and minerals, said during a press conference last August in Dar es Salaam
that developments have already been made towards the provision of jobs
as many have been drafted into training programs to enhance their
professional skills before they are deployed into the market.
The goal is to train 300 workers by
2020, including lawyers, accountants, auditors and engineers. Some
students already study abroad on scholarships from the government of
China, as well as in Norway, U.K., U.S. and Brazil. “I am hopeful that
in five years’ time our country will have the largest number of local
expertise in the natural gas and oil industry,” he said.
The recent development is also viewed as
a ticket to improving the unreliable electricity in the country. In
Tanzanian, only 24 percent of the population is connected to the
national power grid, a number that drops to 7 percent in rural areas.
Simbachawene said the government will invest in new gas-fired power
plants to boost electricity supply in the country, which has frequently
been hit by chronic energy shortages. “During 2015/16 the government
will start implementing the construction of a 240-megawatt power plant
that is expected to cost $344 million.”
He also said a pipeline connecting
offshore natural gas fields to Tanzania’s commercial capital Dar es
Salaam will be commissioned in September. The government claims the
pipeline will enable the country switch to gas-fired power plants and
reduce oil imports, leading to annual savings of over $1 billion.
Although, there are high expectations
set in place for the Tanzanian government with regards to the gas, the
government is tasked with battling issues of public distrust and disillusionment with the covert trade deals.
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