IMPLEMENTATION OF GEOTHERMAL TO BEGIN BY TANZANIA GOVT.
Tanzania’s government has reiterated its commitment to implementing a plan of generating 200MW from geothermal by 2025. Currently, is in dire need to diversify its electricity mix similar to other countries in East Africa.
Energy Permanent Secretary Eng Felchesmi Mramba said Tanzania has identified 52 areas that could produce geothermal power.
These sites are spread across the regions of Mbeya, Arusha, Dodoma, Iringa, Coast, Kilimanjaro, Kagera, Katavi, Shinyanga, Morogoro, Mwara, Manyara, Rukwa, Singida, Songwe and Tanga.
He made statement during his tour to inspect sources of geothermal energy at Kiejo-Mbaka and Ngozi in Mbeya region.
Generally, the government intends to inject into the national grid a total of 1100MW produced from the renewable energy such as geothermal, solar and wind, before 2025,” Eng Mramba stated.
He added that the ministry makes huge efforts in developing sources of geothermal energy because such sources of energy are sustainable.
“The inspection we have done would help the government to take proper steps in developing such sources of power,” he stated.
He said during drought water level in dams would go down, thus affecting hydropower production, but the geothermal can sustain during droughts or rains,” he argued.
TGDC is covering several geothermal sites for potential development in Tanzania, including Ngozi in Mbeya and Songwe regions, Kiejo-Mbaka in Mbeya region, Natron in Arusha region and Luhoi in the coastal region.
On his part, Acting General Manager of the Tanzania Geothermal Development Company (TGDC), a subsidiary of state-owned Tanzania Electric Supply Company (Tanesco), Eng Mathew Mwangomba, said the Kiejo-Mbaka site can produce 60MW of power from the geothermal.
He explained that the government had disbursed about 20bn/- for development of the Kiejo-Mbaka site, and the company has already purchased drilling machine for that purpose. Experts from the TGDC in collaboration with development partners have done all required researches.
He added that the Ngozi site is expected to produce 70 MW from the geothermal and that the TGDC is well organized to ensure that Tanzania benefit from power generated from geothermal.
Tanzania is endowed with a huge geothermal potential which has not yet been used, and has only been explored to a limited extend.
Geothermal power is a reliable, low-cost, environmental friendly, alternative energy supply and an indigenous, renewable energy source, suitable for electricity generation