Norwegian oil and gas producer Equinor also operates Block
2, in which ExxonMobil holds a stake and which is
estimated to hold more than 20 trillion cubic feet of gas.
Equinor and Shell, along with Exxon Mobil, Ophir Energy and
Pavilion Energy, plan to build the LNG plant in Tanzania's south
east Lindi region.
Tanzania already uses some of its natural gas discoveries
for power generation and to run manufacturing plants. It also
plans to build a fertiliser plant.
The government has put the country's total estimated
recoverable gas at 57.54 trillion cubic feet, as of June 2022.
(Reporting by Nuzulack Dausen; Writing by George Obulutsa;
Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
DAR ES SALAAM, March 7 (Reuters) - Negotiations for the
construction of a $30 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG)
terminal between Tanzania, Norway's Equinor and
Britain's Shell are complete and contract preparations
are underway, Tanzania's energy ministry said.
The development of Tanzania's vast offshore gas resources
has been held up for years due to regulatory delays.
Last June, all three parties involved signed a framework
agreement aimed at bringing closer the start of the project's
construction. The government aims to reach a final investment
decision in 2025 for the facility.
"Minister January Makamba said negotiations on the
construction of the LNG project were complete, and now experts
are at work drafting contracts," the energy ministry said on its
Twitter account late Monday.
"Of these contracts, one is about the Host Government
Agreement and another is on joining blocks 1, 2 and 4, which
will provide natural gas for the LNG project," it said without
giving a timeline for when the contracts will be signed.
Shell operates Tanzania's Block 1 and Block 4, which hold 16
trillion cubic feet in estimated recoverable gas.
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