By Daniel Dickinson In Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Tanzania's dreams may come true on Songosongo island

It may be just a speck in the Indian Ocean, but the palm-fringed tropical island of Songosongo off the southern coast of Tanzania could hold the key to the country's future development.

In a matter of weeks, gas will start flowing from Songosongo, East Africa's largest natural gas field.

This will make Tanzania reliably selfsufficient in power.

And eventually it could make the country a power house for the region.

Rain dependency

The gas will fire jet turbines which will provide a quarter of Tanzania's electricity needs for at least the next 20 years.

Mr Kunert: When rainfall is low, the country runs out of electricity

The project, which has been largely funded with World Bank loans, has taken 20 years to get off the ground.

But after a period of intensive construction on the island of Songosongo, the building of a 250 km pipeline, and the refurbishment of a Dar es Salaam power station, the generation of electricity is set to begin.

Paul Kunert, the managing director of Songas, the company behind the project said it is an important step for Tanzania.

"The gas provides a new fuel source.

"At the moment Tanzania's power system is dependent on hydro-electric generation to a very large extent, so when rainfall is low, like this year, the country runs out of electricity."

Cheaper and cleaner

This power deficit has forced Tanzania to import oil to generate electricity, costing the country a budget-breaking US$13m a month.

Mr Rutabanzibwa: Gas will create a basis for economic growth

Patrick Rutabanzibwa, the permanent secretary in the country's energy ministry, believes finding a reliable energy source like gas will boost Tanzania's economic development.

"Economic growth and the demand for power have a linear relationship, so the gas will give us the basis for predictable sustainable economic growth," he said.

The gas is to be used mainly to generate electricity, but it will also be supplied directly to a number of major companies which are planning to use it to power some or all of their production processes.

Tanzania Breweries will be using gas to fire its boilers.

According to general manager, Trevor Gray it has distinct advantages over oil.

"There are economic benefits," he said.

"It is cheaper than heavy furnace oil that we are using at the moment. It is also cleaner and more efficient.

"It is an important move for us and I expect other industries to follow suit."

No access

The search for further deposits is continuing off the island of Songosongo.

Tanzania Breweries will be using gas to fire its boilers

If more gas is found, then Tanzania could become a regional broker for power exports to other East African countries, as well as into the power pool of southern Africa.

But while the government looks towards a brighter future, the average Tanzanian is unlikely to benefit for some time to come.

Only around 7% of all Tanzanians have electricity, either because it costs too much or because the infrastructure is not in place.