By Staff Reporter
Australia`s Key Petroleum Ltd says its West Songosongo licence in Tanzania has the potential to produce 735 million barrels of oil or 1.3 trillion cubic feet of gas, the latest development in various oil explorations in the country.
The West Songosongo area is between the already-producing Songosongo gas field and the country`s coastline. Key Petroleum is also developing a nearby field at Nyuni.
``Exploration and development work is rapidly increasing the value of these areas which form a significant part of Key Petroleum`s international asset portfolio,`` the company said in a statement quoted by Reuters.
``The geological work that our team has been undertaking has provided us with some highly prospective targets in the West Songosongo licence area,`` said Managing Director Ken Russell.
``Although at an early stage of evaluation these results provide us with a greater level of confidence in our Tanzanian interest,`` he said.
About a month ago The Guardian on Sunday quoted the Managing Director of Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation, Mr. Yona Killagane, saying he was optimistic about exploration works and that a 420,000 square-kilometre area had the potential for oil search.
Already 12 gas wells have been discovered out of 41 drilled in the country, showing good prospects of finding oil.
Leading drilling companies are in various inland and deep sea projects working round the clock, Killagane added.
After oil discoveries in Uganda Lake Albert area, many oil exploration companies have shown interest in Tanzania`s Lake Rukwa basin through Lake Tanganyika in the western branch of the Rift Valley.
Killagane said: ``In the next two to three years, oil drilling will start after thorough exploration.
Right now tremendous success has been made in drilling for gas.
We`ve six wells in Songosongo, four at Mnazi Bay and two in Mkuranga. We`re yet to discover oil but what I can assure you is that there are hopeful prospects for oil.``
Norwegian Statoil Exploration Company and Brazil`s Petrobrus are among companies in the field, searching for oil.
Statoil will spend a minimum of $65m during the first phase of an 11- year exploration period on Block II offshore Tanzania on the eastern part of Mandawa Coastal Basin and covers an area of 11,099 square kilometres.
· SOURCE: Sunday Observer
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