Hydrocarbon Exploration Undertaken At Lake Tanganyika North Block With Airborne Gradiometry Surveys

Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) has recently announced the undertaking of Airborne Gravity Gradiometry Surveys (AGGS) on Lake Tanganyika North Block, aiming at acquiring high resolution gravity and magnetic data to map the geology of the framework’s subsurface.

The AGGS is being fully funded by TPDC’s Development Fund and mapping activities will last until January, 2016 over the districts of Kigoma Rural, Kigoma, Ujiji, Uvinza, and Mpanda which compound the north block.

The AGGS is being developed by a low-flying special aircraft at altitudes between the 80 metres and 100 metres above the ground at a speed of 220 km per hour, and is expected to assist in planning the 2D seismic survey, which will support the identification of potential areas associated with hydrocarbon deposits to identify and efficiently select future drilling targets.

Lake Tanganyika North Block together with the South Block and Offshore blocks, constitute the Lake Tanganyika area that has recently attracted attention from energy companies interested in undertaking hydrocarbon exploration.

To date, nine international oil & gas exploration and production companies have shown interest in the north block with Swala, Beach and Ophir Energy from Australia, Kosmos and ERHC Energy of Texas from USA and Total from France among the most important according to TPDC.

In the south block, Beach Energy currently holds 100% of the Lake Tanganyika South Production Sharing Agreement (LTS PSA) and is the only operator of the license.

Regarding offshore blocks, four international companies showed interest in May, 2014 to undertake exploration activities at seven blocks totaling an area of 30,575.9 square kilometres.

These companies were China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), Statoil & Exxon-Mobil from Norway and USA, Mubadala from UAE, and Gazprom from Russia according to TPDC.