Discoverer Americas Drillship Makes Big Gas Discovery Offshore Tanzania

Transocean’s 6th generation drillship Discoverer Americas drilled into a huge gas reservoir offshore Tanzania recently according to a statement today by Statoil, the operator of the rig.

The Norwegian energy firm reports that the Giligiliani-1 discovery, located along the western side of block 2 at a 2,500-meter water depth, contains an estimated 1.2 trillion cubic feet of natural gas bringing the total discovered reserves in Block 2 to roughly 21 trillion cubic feet.

Between Statoil, BG Group and Ophir Energy, the total discovered gas reserves offshore Tanzania is around 38 trillion cubic feet.

“This discovery has proven the gas play extends into the western part of block 2, which opens additional prospects,” commented Nick Maden, senior vice president for Statoil’s exploration activities in the Western Hemisphere.

Discoveries like this will most certainly result in a huge positive impact for Tanzania’s economy, as well as eventually lead to a new trade route for liquefied natural gas originating from the south eastern coast of Africa in the coming years. Many more discoveries like this will have to occur however for Tanzania to start to hold a candle to the gas fields off the north eastern coast of Qatar however. To put the recent discovered gas fields in perspective, Qatar’s South Pars/North Dome Gas Condensate fields hold an estimated 1260 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas reserves.

Statoil notes the Discoverer Americas will now drill the Kungamanga prospect located in the central part of block 2.