Tanzania and Zambia discuss security and new gas pipeline in key meeting

Tanzania and Zambia hold crucial meetings to discuss the security and extension of the Tanzania-Zambia Mafuta (Tazama) oil pipeline, as well as the construction of a new gas pipeline. The meeting aims to assess the implementation of security measures and strategies agreed upon in previous discussions, including the involvement of local communities along the pipeline route. Both countries also plan to increase the capacity of the Tazama pipeline to transport additional petroleum products and explore the feasibility of constructing a new gas pipeline from Tanzania to Zambia.

Tanzania and Zambia are discussing the construction of a new gas pipeline today as they meet to discuss the security and extension of the Tanzania-Zambia Mafuta (Tazama). The representatives from Tanzania scheduled to be present at the meeting include Tanzania’s Home Affairs Minister Hamad Yussuf Masauni and Defense Minister Innocent Bashungwa, according to Tanzania’s Energy Minister January Makamba.

On the other end, Ambrose Lufuma, Zambia’s minister of defense, Jacob Mwiimbu, the minister of home affairs and internal security, and Peter Kapala, the energy minister, will serve as Zambia’s representatives.

Yesterday, Mr. Makamba informed the media that the two nations’ decision to begin transferring refined oil rather than crude oil prompted the discussion on the pipeline’s safety and security.

“The meeting will assess the implementation of security and safety issues of the Tazama oil pipeline as agreed upon in the first meeting of these three ministries, which was held in December 2022 in Dar es Salaam,” he said.

He added: “In the first meeting, various strategies were agreed upon, including the involvement of local communities in areas where the pipeline passes through.”

The 1,710-kilometer Tazama pipeline, which connects Kigamboni, Tanzania to Indeni, Zambia, can move 90 million liters of oil per month. According to Mr. Makamba, the two nations also intend to increase the pipeline’s capacity in order to transport additional petroleum products and reach Tanzania’s southern areas.

“We also plan to discuss the procedures for conducting a feasibility study for the construction of a new gas pipeline from Tanzania to Zambia,” Mr. Makamba said.

“These are strategic projects that, when implemented, will substantially reduce the costs of oil supply to our southern region and boost trade, especially through our ports to countries like Zambia and the DRC, which use them to transit oil,” he added.

The examination of the natural gas pipeline, as well as the pipeline expansion to allow for the transit of all types of oil, is presently underway, he later noted. Tanzania’s energy minister also gave an update on the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Dam Project, noting that it has now achieved the required depth of 163.61 meters for power generation.

“To initiate electricity generation, the water level has to reach a minimum of 163 meters above sea level. Thus, we have reached and exceeded the minimum level,” he said.

The water volume has also surpassed 13 billion cubic meters, or 43 percent of the maximum level, which is 30 billion cubic meters, according to the energy minister. “We expect the wet testing at the dam to be around February 2024,” he said.