ARA Petroleum is pleased to announce it was presented with the 25-year Development Licence over the Ntorya Gas discovery at a handover ceremony in Tanzania earlier this week.
The ceremony, attended by over 1,000 people, took place in Mtwara, capital of the Mtwara region where Ntorya lies. ARA Petroleum Tanzania (APT) and development partner Aminex Plc were presented with the licence by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy of Tanzania Dr. Doto Mashaka Biteko.
Attendees included Lindi Regional Commissioner Ms. Zainab Rajabu Taleck, District Commissioner Mr. Abdallah Mwaipaya, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry for Energy, Mr. Felchemsi Mramba, Member of the Board and Managing Director of the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation, Mr. Dismas Fuko and Mr. Mussa Makame, and the Managing Director of the Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority, Mr. Charles Sangweni.
“We were honoured to receive this licence from Deputy Prime Minister Doto Biteko at such a prestigious event. This ceremony marks a significant milestone in our commitment to harness Tanzania’s gas resources for the benefit of its people. Our ambition for this serious endeavour is that it results in boosting economic development, alleviating energy poverty and supporting the country’s energy transition,” ARA Petroleum Tanzania General Manager Erhan Saygi said.
The Deputy Prime Minister outlined the government’s vision for the future. ARA Petroleum was encouraged to hear that the Deputy Prime Minister anticipated the completion of the pipeline from Ntorya to Madimba within the next six months, enabling the delivery of gas for the production of electricity. The Deputy Prime Minister noted that:
President Dr. Samia Suluhu Hassan has been a driving force behind this gas exploitation initiative.
For the first time under the current government, substantial quantities of gas will be extracted as a consequence of this project.
The licence handover represents the government’s dedication to ensuring that the country’s resources including natural gas, benefits its citizens.
The licence marks the beginning of gas exploitation to further strengthen electricity availability in the Mtwara region.
APT has begun work at the Ntorya site, acquiring land for the upstream processing facilities and the Chikumbi-1 appraisal well location, while expanding another nearby site to accommodate the construction of a camp and storage yard. It is also putting into place the logistics necessary to conduct the subsurface work that will lead to first gas production.
This includes conducting a well-test on Ntorya-2 and converting it to a producing well, drilling the Chikumbi-1 appraisal well with a view to converting it to a producing well and carrying out a well workover at Ntorya-1, before turning it into a producing well. First gas is anticipated as soon as the pipeline carrying the gas away from the field is completed. This is expected next year.
According to a Gas Sales Agreement signed with the Tanzanian Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) earlier this year, APT expects to produce 40 to 60 million standard cubic feet a day (mmscf/d) in the first year of production and to increase that to 140 mmscf/d within a few years’ time. Such volumes will increase Tanzanian gas production by between 20-80 percent.
Enormous potential to boost Tanzanian industrial development
Beyond initial production, APT believes there is potential to produce far greater volumes of gas from Ntorya, having conducted an extensive 3D seismic survey over the wider licence area.
This potential will require investment in a phased development of the Ntorya gas field and the maturing of domestic industries as gas offtakers, such as fertiliser, cement and plastics production plants, vehicle CNG stations, domestic LPG suppliers and additional gas-fired power stations for industrial and residential use.
“We are excited about further exploration and appraisal work in this area as we consider it to hold truly enormous volumes of gas. We believe this could be game-changing for Tanzania’s energy security, for Mtwara’s industrial development and for Tanzanians’ prosperity. We look forward to building strong partnerships with local businesses and entrepreneurs to share knowledge, impart expertise and build a home-grown industry around a Ntorya gas hub,” APT General Manager Erhan Saygi said.