Shell and Equinor certain that natural gas project in Tanzania will go ahead
Proposals to build a $30bn LNG plant since 2014 have been clouded by policy uncertainty in Tanzania’s extractives industry after the government overhauled mining legislation
Dar es Salaam/Johannesburg — Royal Dutch Shell and Equinor say they are committed to a project that will allow the export of natural gas from Tanzania. Proposals to build a $30bn liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant, in gestation since 2014, have been clouded by policy uncertainty in Tanzania’s extractives industry. Investor sentiment towards the East African nation has been soured by the government’s overhaul of mining legislation that has enabled it to renegotiate contracts. Still, companies involved in the country’s gas industry maintain they are prepared to move forward. “For now, the focus is on agreeing to the host government agreement (HGA) that is to set the legislative, regulatory and fiscal terms for the project,” Sally Donaldson, a spokesperson for Shell, said in an e-mailed response to questions. Before a final investment decision is reached, an engineering study must be conducted that will last about two years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars, she said. Constructio...
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