East Africa Risks Missing Gas Boom

Delay in plans and gas glut may defeat East Africa’s plan to become a major liquefied natural gas exporter.

Reuters in a report has said that a single minded focus on LNG may also see Tanzania and Mozambique compromise on developing the region through gas-fired power stations and plants converting gas to fuel.

In recent years, the region has seen major gas discoveries with reserves big enough to supply to supply Germany, Britain, France and Italy for fifteen years, Reuters said.

The size of the discoveries, their location en route to Asia and buyers’ desire to diversify away from big suppliers Qatar and Australia have made East Africa an attractive prospect for LNG. But the clock is ticking, the report said.

“We don’t know what the market is going to be post 2020. We need to get there before then,” John Peffer, managing director of Anadarko Petroleum Mozambique told an energy conference in Maputo. “We need to progress quickly.”