TANZANIA: Kinyerezi 1 Expansion Drives Gas Demand despite Record Production

As the extension of the Kinyerezi I Power Station continues to increase power generation capacity from 150 megawatts to 335 megawatts gas providers are already embracing themselves for increased gas demand from the project.

According to Orca Energy which produces gas from Songo Songo the extension of Kinyerezi 1 is expected to exceed the current Songo Songo field deliverability with the field currently producing 135 to 140 MMcfd of gas with a design capacity of between 150 – 155 MMcfd after huge investments in compression, workovers and integrity management since 2020.

“We have accelerated front-end engineering for additional compression which has been proposed in the 2023 budget in addition to the procurement of long lead items for potential new drilling in 2024 to keep pace with the accelerated Additional gas sales demand,  which will have nearly doubled in the span of less than two years,” Jay Lyons, Chief Executive Officer Orca Energy.

Another gas provider Wentworth Resources estimates that an additional 11-12 mmcf per day of additional gas demand will arise from the project. Already the company has superseded its earlier set production projections of between 75 – 85 MMcfd in 2021 with the average 2022 daily production at Mnazi Bay averaging over 92 MMcfd as per the half-year filings. The company now says it is Optimising production output, and monitoring field production to enable it to meet increasing demand while identifying new opportunities to expand beyond its core producing asset.

And with the delays in the Nyerere Dam project expected to continue amid increasing demand from industry and citizens and with the expected starting of commercial operation of the larger 600MW  Kinyerezi III in 2023 producers have been forced to continue the search for new gas discoveries, increase efficiency in their producing wells and repair existing infrastructure.

Currently over 2D and 3D seismic acquisition over 700 km2 is ongoing or planned for Q1 2023 in Songo Songo and Kiliwani North with drilling expected thereafter at the yet-to-be-commercialized Ntorya field in an effort to bridge the current gas deficit from oncoming projects.

Download a copy of the TANZANIA-UPSTREAM-SECTOR-ACTIVITY-OUTLOOK-2023-2024 HERE