PURA pushes for sustainable natural gas access in Tanzania
DODOMA: The Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority (PURA) has revealed that it is current implementing various strategies aimed at ensuring the availability of natural gas in the country for various uses.
This was revealed on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, by the Head of the Local Content and Stakeholders Engagement Unit at the authority, Mr Charles Nyangi, during the ongoing Public Service Week exhibitions taking place in Dodoma.
“The Petroleum Act of 2015 mandates PURA to advise the Minister responsible for petroleum affairs on various matters, including promoting oil and natural gas exploration blocks.
“PURA continues to implement this core responsibility, which aims at attracting investment in oil and natural gas exploration activities in the country,” Mr Nyangi noted.
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According to Nyangi, through such investments, exploration activities will increase, leading to the discovery of oil or further discovery of natural gas, thus enabling the country to have sufficient gas for various uses.
Speaking on natural gas production, the unit’s head explained that PURA has continued to supervise and regulate gas production activities from the Mnazi Bay block in Mtwara Region and Songo Songo in Lindi Region.
Through its regulatory role, PURA has facilitated various actions aimed at ensuring the sustainable production of natural gas.
Among those measures are requiring block operators to rehabilitate wells on time, drill new production wells, and conduct regular inspections of gas production infrastructure.
Regarding well drilling, Nyangi noted that based on PURA’s recommendations, Maurel et Prom Tanzania, the operator of the Mnazi Bay block, is preparing to drill three new wells.
These wells are expected to increase natural gas production by more than 30 million cubic feet per day.
PURA is also overseeing preparations for the drilling of gas wells in the Ntorya Discovery Area in Mtwara Region, where between 60 to 140 million cubic feet of natural gas will be produced daily.
