Aminex upbeat on Tanzania project

Exploration firm Aminex would be able to export 300 million barrels of oil from Tanzania if its forthcoming drilling project in the country was successful, the firm's chief executive, Mr Brian Hall, said yesterday.

Aminex is due to begin drilling a well at its Nyuni prospect in Tanzania in August.

A second well will follow, with the initial stage of the overall project costing about $10 million (€8.5 million). Mr Hall said the exploration had the potential to be a "company maker", particularly if oil, rather than gas, was found.

"What we're looking for now is something big and not something small," Mr Hall said after Aminex's annual meeting in Dublin.

The Tanzanian operation is the largest drilling effort ever undertaken by the firm which is based in London but registered in Dublin. If Aminex finds oil in Tanzania, it will be free to sell it on the world markets. But gas sales would be restricted to the regional African market.

Mr Hall acknowledged that no exploration on Africa's eastern side had yet come across commercial quantities of oil, but said Aminex was one of the first firms to actively explore the region.

Mr Hall said Aminex could comfortably afford to pursue the Tanzanian exploration under current conditions, but acknowledged that a larger partner could be called in if a significant discovery was made.