Page 15 - DMEA Week 15 2021
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DMEA TERMINALS & SHIPPING DMEA
Tanzania’s new president aims
to push LNG project ahead
AFRICA SAMIA Suluhu Hassan, the new president of construction of a gas plant with two or three liq-
Tanzania, said last week that she wanted to push uefaction trains in Lindi, a coastal town in the
a long-delayed LNG project led by Equinor south-eastern part of the country. The facility
(Norway) and Royal Dutch Shell (UK/Nether- would use gas from three deepwater offshore
lands) forward. sites containing about 35 trillion cubic feet
Speaking at a ceremony marking the formal (991bn cubic metres) – Block 2, assigned to
appointment of her new cabinet ministers and Equinor, and Blocks 1 and 4, assigned to Shell –
their deputies, Hassan instructed the country’s as feedstock for LNG production.
Ministry of Energy to bring negotiations on the Equinor has expressed scepticism about the
$30bn Tanzania LNG project to a close as quickly viability of Tanzania LNG. Earlier this year, the
as possible. She also requested that the ministry Norwegian major wrote the book value of the
work to determine whether the scheme was fac- project down by $982mn, saying that its break-
ing any specific obstacles. even price was likely too high to be profitable.
“It is time to know if the project is viable or It has stopped short of abandoning the scheme,
not and understand who is blocking it,” she said. though, and says it may resume work at a later
These measures will allow Tanzania’s gov- time.
ernment to decide whether to continue working Meanwhile, the project is running far behind
with Equinor and Shell or to look for another schedule. Tanzanian officials had previously said
partner, she added. “If the existing investors are they hoped to sign a host government agreement
not willing, then you [the ministry] must find (HGA) with Shell and Equinor in 2019, and this
others,” she declared. would have allowed the two majors to begin
James Mataragio, the managing director work in 2022.
of Tanzania Petroleum Development Corp. However, these deadlines were not met,
(TPDC), responded to Hassan’s statements by partly because of commercial disputes between
calling an emergency meeting with senior mem- the companies and the government and partly
bers of his staff. “We [TPDC] have to think and because Hassan’s predecessor John Magu-
discuss what to do,” he told The Citizen. fuli made the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline
The Tanzania LNG project envisions the (EACOP) project a higher priority.
Week 15 15•April•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P15
