General Information

EWURA oversees the regulation of midstream and downstream natural gas operations. This includes activities such as processing, transporting, storing, and distributing natural gas within Mainland Tanzania. The regulated infrastructure encompasses processing plants, transmission and distribution pipelines, and storage facilities.

Tanzania has been exploring for natural gas for more than 51 years. The first natural gas discovery in Tanzania was made in 1974 on the Songo Songo Island (Lindi Region) followed by a second discovery at the Mnazi Bay (Mtwara Region) in 1982. The natural gas from Songo Songo was first commercialized in 2004 and the natural gas from Mnazi Bay in 2006. The commercialization of the two discoveries propelled further gas exploration both onshore and offshore.

Four service providers are actively carrying out midstream and downstream natural gas activities. These are The Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC), Songas Limited, Pan African Energy Tanzania Limited (PAET), and Maurel & Prom (M&P).

Other service providers that are still exploring in offshore and onshore are Ophir Energy plc, Shell/BG Group plc (BG), Statoil, ExxonMobil, and Ndovu Resources (Aminex).

As of now, discovered natural gas reserves in the country amount to 57.54 trillion standard cubic feet (TCF).