KEY POINTS
- JGC signed an MoU with Tanzania to provide LNG expertise and training support.
- Tanzania holds 35 trillion cubic feet of offshore natural gas reserves—among Africa’s largest.
- The deal strengthens Japan-Africa energy ties as Tanzania courts Shell and Equinor for an LNG megaproject.
The Tanzanian government and Japan’s JGC Holdings Corp. have inked a memorandum of understanding to exchange technical know-how and aid in the development of Tanzania’s enormous offshore natural gas reserves. This move could hasten one of the continent’s biggest planned LNG projects.
The deal, which was revealed last week at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9) in Yokohama, unites Tanzania’s Ministry of Energy with JGC Corp., the company’s overseas engineering division. The two sides will collaborate on LNG plant design, project economics, and workforce training as Dar es Salaam pushes to monetize reserves estimated at about 35 trillion cubic feet.
At a time when Tokyo is rushing to diversify supplies after years of reliance on the Middle East and Russia, Tanzania’s offshore gas reserves are almost equal to 12 years’ worth of Japan’s total LNG consumption, highlighting its strategic significance.
Tanzania Seeks Global Partners for LNG Mega Project
Energy giants Shell Plc and Equinor ASA have been courted by President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s administration to resurrect long-stalled plans for a multibillion-dollar LNG export terminal. If export earnings can be properly managed, the government has presented natural gas as a potential game-changer for public finances as well as a driver of industrial growth.
The collaboration gives JGC, one of the most seasoned LNG engineering and construction companies in Japan, an early stake in a project with regional and international ramifications. Alongside Tanzania’s ambassador to Japan, Baraka Haran Luvanda, JGC President Shoji Yamada was present at the signing.
Through knowledge transfer initiatives targeted at educating Tanzanian engineers and technicians, the partnership will go beyond plant design to human capital development. These kinds of capacity-building initiatives are thought to be essential to making sure that local communities gain something tangible from energy megaprojects rather than being marginalized.
