Tanzania’s energy ministry said that Shell, Equinor, and the government of Tanzania had concluded talks for the building of a $30 billion LNG facility, and that contract preparation is now under way.
The huge project aims to pipe some 40 trillion cubic feet of gas held in deep water blocks 1, 2, and 4 to a 10-million-tonne-per-annum LNG plant at. The development of Tanzania’s vast offshore gas resources has been held up for years due to regulatory delays.
Last June, Shell and Equinor signed a framework agreement with Tanzania, which was aimed at bringing closer the start of the project’s construction. The government aims to reach a final investment decision on the facility in 2025.
Shell operates Tanzania’s Blocks 1 and 4, which have an estimated 16 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas.
Equinor, a Norwegian oil and gas company, also operates Block 2, which ExxonMobil owns and is expected to contain more than 20 trillion cubic feet of gas.