28 March 2012, Sweetcrude, DAR ES SALAAM – Tanzania plans to put 16 deepwater blocks on offer in a licencing round billed for next month, senior principal geologist at the state-run Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation, Meshack Kagya, told an energy conference in Nairobi.
It would be the country fourth offshore licensing round conducted by the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC).
Tanzania licensed a dozen deep-water blocks in previous rounds, yielding trillions of cubic feet in natural gas.
A smaller round was put off last year by the TPDC, citing the need for fresh seismic to properly demarcate the blocks.
Since the 2006 oil find in Uganda by UK company, Tullow Oil, East Africa become a hotbed of exploration.
Kenya announced the discovery of oil for the first time early this week, a development Kenyan leader, Mwai Kibaki, described as “good news” that would likely tranform the fortunes of his country.
