Tanzania to Go Ahead With Oil, Gas Licensing Round

Tanzania will go ahead with fourth oil and gas licensing round next October despite opposition from the local private sector and politicians.

"Nothing has changed, the exploration blocks allocation schedule remains the same," Minister for Energy and Minerals, Professor Sospeter Muhongo told Tanzania Daily News.  

Muhongo said that the government is trying to improve laws to meet modern day need and compete with countries like Mozambique.

Mozambique has currently established that it has close to 200 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves while Tanzania has so far managed 43 million cubic feet.

Dismissing talk by newly elected Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) Chairman, Reginald Mengi who called for suspension of the exercise until the country gets a working regulatory regime, Muhongo noted that no local investors can afford to engage in the oil and gas exploration business.