Table of Contents
Rostam Aziz, founder and chairman of Tanzania's Taifa Group, is expanding his energy footprint into natural gas after his company Taifa Gas Tanzania reached a definitive agreement on April 13 to acquire a 49 percent stake in PanAfrican Energy Corporation (PAEM), the Mauritian holding vehicle through which Canada's Orca Energy Group has operated the Songo Songo gas field since 2004.
Under the Share Purchase Agreement, Taifa Gas will take 49 percent of PAEM while Dubai-based Amber Energy Investment L.L.C-FZ absorbs the remaining 51 percent, giving the consortium full control of the Tanzanian assets. Orca is exiting for a nominal $10, citing mounting contingent liabilities, unresolved disputes and deep uncertainty over the renewal of the Songo Songo development license, which expires this year.
PAEM's operating subsidiary, PanAfrican Energy Tanzania (PAET), holds the Songo Songo production sharing agreement alongside the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation. The field, located off the Tanzanian coast, has produced more than 500 billion cubic feet of natural gas across more than 18 years of operation and is supported by eight wells, four offshore and four onshore.
Aziz described the transaction as "a pivotal moment for Tanzania," saying domestic ownership of the field would strengthen the country's industrial capacity and keep more economic value within its borders.
The acquisition deepens Taifa Group's existing position as one of East Africa's largest liquefied petroleum gas distributors. The company is nearing completion of a $130 million LPG terminal at the Dongo Kundu Special Economic Zone in Mombasa, Kenya, described as the largest private foreign direct investment in Kenya since 1977. The Mombasa facility is set to become the continent's biggest LPG import and storage terminal once it opens.
Aziz, who was named Tanzania's first dollar billionaire by Forbes in 2013, built Taifa Group into a diversified conglomerate spanning energy, telecommunications, logistics, mining, agriculture and manufacturing. His telecom holdings include a stake in MIC Tanzania, which took control of TIGO and Zantel in 2022 for around $100 million.
The Songo Songo deal positions Taifa as a major force in Tanzania's upstream natural gas sector at a moment when the country is pushing to maximize domestic benefit from its hydrocarbon resources. Orca's exit brings more than two decades of Canadian involvement in the field to a close.
