Lupane gas exploration tenders to be floated

Government will shortly float a tender to determine the quantity of gas in Lupane and the type of machinery required to extract it, a cabinet minister said on Sunday.

In 2007, the government declared the exploration of the gas a priority, but to date no meaningful development has taken place in the area, Zimbabwe's New Ziana news agency reported.

Industry experts say Hwange holds vast deposits of coal-bed methane gas, some of it estimated to be 95 percent pure methane - hidden between the area and neighbouring Botswana.

Energy and Power Development minister Elton Mangoma said US$12 million has been set aside for the quantification of the gas in Lupane.

"We are going to float a tender this month for the quantification of gas in Lupane to enable us to decide what sort of plant to put there.

"We hope that the documents will come back by October and between December 2012 and January 2013 we should have completed the exercise," he said.

He said work to set up the appropriate plant will start in the first quarter of 2013.

"The quantity of deposits will also determine what the gas will be used for. The first priority is power generation. If there is more we can use it to manufacture fertilizers as well as pumping it to people's homes for domestic use," Mangoma said.

Mangoma said the government will decide on the ownership structure after the quantification exercise.

"We will look into the issue of having a joint venture with private players later," he said.

Experts have warned the country might lose out on its rich coal-bed methane gas reserves as Botswana has already started tapping into the shared resource.

There are also fears that the gas was escaping through holes drilled by an unnamed French firm, which abandoned exploration five years ago. Implementation of the Lupane gas project, which was granted National Project Status by Government five years ago, is expected to ease the country's power woes.

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