Over 1,000 Dar homes to access LNG

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) has announced that next month a majority of Dar es Salaam residents will start accessing natural gas from Mtwara for domestic use, after connection to Ubungo plant in Dar es Salaam.

The new pledge was made by TPDC after completion of the exercise of fixing a Mother Pressure Reduction Station (MPRS) which now allows gas to travel to houses and industries.

A recent report published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicated that the government expects that share of charcoal and wood in final energy consumption would reach 49 per cent in 2040 following the increased supply of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) for the domestic market.

Areas that would benefit from the natural gas project - that intends to connect 1,000 households by end of next year - are Ubungo, Sinza, Mlalakuwa and the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM).

TPDC acting director general Kapuulya Musomba, told reporters yesterday that the distribution plant was imported from India recently, adding that currently technicians were in the process of connecting gas to houses and industries.

“This is good news to TPDC and the public. We were waiting for construction of this plant to be completed and we’re now hoping that before the end of next month the residents will start enjoying the use of natural gas from Mtwara,” he said

He said the projection was to collect at least Sh500 billion in revenue from natural gas by 2020.

Available statistics indicate the country currently uses just a tiny fraction - 70 million cubic feet out of the total capacity of 784 million cubic feet - of the resource from Mtwara and Songo- Songo, a mere ten per cent that currently goes into power generation to some industries.

Currently over 30 houses in Mikocheni and 47 industries have been connected to LNG. The National Environment Statistics Report (2017) showed there are signs of growing use of LNG as a source of heating and cooking.