Zimbabwe edges closer to methane gas extraction

ONE of the six investors awarded special grants by Government to prospect for coal-bed methane (CBM) gas in Matebeleland North has made significant progress and is inching closer to tapping the resource, an official has said.

In 2020, the Government issued special grants to five investors - Alabara Resources, Zambezi Gas and Sakunda Energy (all being local companies), as well as Tumagole of South Africa and Shangani Energy Exploration (SEE), which is owned by Chinese steel giant Sinosteel - to explore and tap into clean energy for electricity generation in Lupane, Gwayi and Hwange.

In 2021, Jacqueline Resources (Pvt) Ltd, whose headquarters are in Australia, was also awarded a special grant to explore and develop CBM fields in the same province.

Mines and Mining Development Deputy Minister Dr Polite Kambamura said Alabara Resources had finished phase 1 of confirmatory drilling and is now going into Phase 2, which entails mine development.

"They (Alabara) have finished phase 1 of confirmation drilling, which went up to a depth of 700 metres. They have also established a gas laboratory at Lupane State University and (signed) a memorandum of understanding for knowledge transfer by gas experts from abroad," he said.

"Alabara are now working on phase 2, which is the development stage of the project, and on implementation of the project, they will use compressed gas to fuel gas vehicles
and power generation through a gas-fired plant.

"We look forward to seeing significant progress on the project."

Alabara specialises in exploration and development of mineral projects such that they turn into profitable assets.

It is presently working on extending its special grant on the 110 000 hectare CBM concession in Gwayi.

The other investors, Dr Kambamura said, were at different stages of implementing their projects.

It is believed that funding constraints were affecting most of them.

Zambezi Gas, which has the CBM special grant in Hwange district, has drilled three wells, with one of them considered highly promising.

"Zambezi Gas are awaiting funding, while Sakunda Energy was meant to do a joint venture with the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, but currently haven't started anything in terms of drilling due to funding challenges," added Dr Kambamura.

There has been slow progress by Tumagole, although they did an aero-magnetic survey and identified drilling positions for exploration.

The company reportedly intends to invest as much as R55 billion into the extraction of methane gas in Zimbabwe, while SEE has earmarked US$780 million to build a 600MW power station and petrochemical-related industries.

SEE has so far done electro-drilling, with three holes having been drilled.

It is also in the process of renewing its special grant in Lupane.

"We are urging the CBM investors to periodically produce progress reports for the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development, and, as a Government, where no meaningful progress is recorded, we will not hesitate to revoke those special grants using the use-it-or-lose-it policy," he said.

Zimbabwe is believed to host huge deposits of untapped CBM, especially in Matebeleland North province.

However, investors are assessing whether the deposits are commercially exploitable.

Mines and Mining Development Portfolio Committee chairperson Mr Edmund Mkaratigwa said: "On our part as a committee, we are aware of the investment promotion efforts in the coal-bed methane gas sector and the overall engagement in mineral exploration by the Government.

"All the six investors are showing potential to establish the CBM investments, but, as you might be aware, exploration is capital-intensive and these investors have been hamstrung by financial constraints. We remain hopeful that funding will be secured."

CBM, he said, had the potential to create other opportunities such as a hydrogen economy, which would also bolster Zimbabwe's efforts to transition to clean energy.

"Venturing into such a business (CBM) can be propelled by the hydrogen economy coming out of it," he said.

Natural gas can be used for heating and cooking, as well as industrial use in electricity generation and production of chemicals such as ammonia-based fertilisers.

Zimbabwe's gas reserves are estimated to be more than those in all other countries in the region combined.

Hwange and Lupane are understood to have over 800 million cubic metres per square kilometre, while further studies indicate that Zimbabwe has more than 40 trillion cubic feet of potentially recoverable gas in the Lupane-Lubimbi area, enough to generate millions of dollars in potential revenue and create thousands of jobs.