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Canada and Tanzania Partner to Advance Geothermal Energy Development
Ottawa, Canada | Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Climate Action Africa (CAA) and the Tanzania Geothermal Development Company Limited (TGDC) are proud to announce the launch of a technical assistance initiative to support the development of the Meru geothermal prospect in Tanzania.
This partnership, a first under the Climate Action Africa initiative in Tanzania, marks a significant milestone in Canada–Tanzania cooperation to advance clean, renewable energy solutions. The project will strengthen Tanzania’s national energy mix by supporting low-emission geothermal development and building technical capacity within TGDC.
The initiative includes two core components: a detailed surface exploration study of the Meru geothermal site and targeted training to enhance local expertise in geothermal resource assessment, planning, and development. It will also promote inclusive engagement with Indigenous peoples and local communities throughout the project lifecycle. TGDC will contribute expertise in geothermal on field data collection as counterpart, facilitating the team by providing key policies in line with the Tanzania Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). Furthermore, TGDC will introduce the team to all project stakeholders and secure an access to the project area.
The work will be carried out in collaboration with climate and geothermal specialists from Oxfam Consults and TownRock Energy, a leading UK-based geothermal energy company, and specialist consultancy Aquarius Resources.
“This technical assistance will significantly contribute to our national efforts to diversify energy sources by increasing the country’s energy security and reduce dependence on the limited sources of energy by also strengthening TGDC’s institutional capacity in geothermal development” said Mathew Mwangomba, General Manager of TGDC.
On the other hand, Jaime Webbe, Project Director for Climate Action Africa, said, “we’re excited to support Tanzania in unlocking its geothermal potential. This collaboration reflects a milestone in climate resilience, sustainable development, and inclusive, locally driven solutions”.
“Our team of geothermal experts is delighted to be able to support CAA and TGDC in this pioneering endeavour to progress geothermal energy in Tanzania” said David Townsend, CEO at Town Rock Energy.
The supports from different development partners including CAA have played a great role in development of geothermal in Tanzania and the government through TGDC encourage more development partners to support geothermal energy subsector. Currently, power generation mix consists only of hydro power, natural gas, solar, biomass and liquid fuel (HFO and diesel). As of April 2025, the total installed power generation capacity totaled 4,031.71MW, of which 2,716.27MW (67.4%) was hydro, 1,198.82 MW (29.5%) natural gas, 101.12MW (2.6%) liquid fuel based, 5MW (0.1 %) solar and 10.5MW( 0.3%) biomass. Power demand is growing between 15-20 percent per year and the highest peak demand reached 1,921.44 MW in April 2025.
To meet the growing power demand, enhance energy security and diversify further the power generation mix, there is a need to produce additional power from renewables such as geothermal energy which is a promising technology for Tanzania. This initiative aims to help overcome key technical and financial barriers to geothermal development, and to foster long-term climate resilience and energy security for the country.