LONDON, (Reuters) – Western companies announced finds of huge additional quantities of gas off the coast of Mozambique and Tanzania, cementing the future of East Africa as a major new supplier exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG) to energy-hungry Asia.
Italian oil group Eni said yesterday it had discovered a vast new field at its exploration block in Mozambique, while Britain’s BG Group and explorer Ophir Energy said they made a big find at their Mzia well in Tanzanian waters.
The size of these discoveries, coming on top of earlier finds, will more than justify the billions of dollars it will cost to build at least two LNG projects to cool the gas into liquid form for shipment on tankers.
Calling its gas find “important”, Eni said it estimated that, with the latest discovery made in Mozambique, its block could potentially hold up to 52 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas.
Around 10 trillion cubic feet would be enough to meet an entire year’s gas consumption by France, Germany, Britain and Italy.
“The success at Mzia-1 is a major step towards a Tanzanian LNG hub development in Block 1,” said Chief Executive Nick Cooper of Ophir Energy, whose shares jumped 12 percent.
Oil and gas companies have flocked to East Africa in recent years, spurred by advances in deep-water drilling and problems in securing access to reserves in areas historically seen as more promising, such as the Middle East.
The resources discoveries have boosted prospects for the region’s development, paving the way for energy-intensive industries to emerge there if some of the gas is made available for domestic use.
