( ORYX ENERGIES) - Oryx Energies has completed the construction of a new Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinder filling and storage depot in Dodoma, marking the end of a key phase of investment in new and upgraded LPG facilities across the country over the past 18 months. The choice of Dodoma coincides with the Government’s recent decision to move all Ministries from Dar es Salaam to the country’s capital.

Oryx Energies has built a total of three new LPG cylinder filling and storage depots over the past 18 months in Iringa, Zanzibar and, most recently, Dodoma, with a combined storage capacity of 175 tonnes. It has also extended its existing depots in Mwanza, Isaka, Moshi, Kurasini and Mbeya, increasing storage space by a further 480 tonnes and growing cylinder filling capacity. All of the facilities have been designed and built to meet the requirements set by national and international safety standards.

“Our investments in LPG facilities in Tanzania over the past 18 months aim to ensure that LPG is readily available to households and industries in every corner of the country”, commented Nick McAleer, Country Director for Oryx Energies. “Our aim is to give families access to a cost effective and cleaner way of cooking. This will help to protect their health as well as the country’s forests, as they move away from using charcoal and firewood. As an example, a fifteen kilo cylinder of LPG is equivalent to using 25 kilos of charcoal.”

 “Cooking with LPG is easy and offers a safer, healthier and more ecological alternative to firewood and charcoal. LPG is also priced competitively compared with charcoal, which is a health and environmental hazard. Similarly, for industry, LPG is an efficient power source, offering an attractive alternative to diesel or fuel oil,” Mr. McAleer added.

Oryx Energies has been present in Tanzania since 1999 and is the market leader in LPG, with over 1 million cylinders in circulation and an extensive network of dealers and super dealers. It has invested heavily in bulk LPG storage facilities in Dar es Salaam, as well as a series of upcountry depots and filling plants, to ensure a reliable supply to businesses and consumers across the country. A second LPG storage sphere is currently under construction.

Oryx Energies has been promoting LPG in sub-Saharan Africa for over 15 years, as a cleaner, healthier and more environmentally-friendly alternative to firewood, charcoal and kerosene. It has accelerated investments in recent years, supporting the increased awareness and willingness of governments to take action in the fight against deforestation and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

About Oryx Energies

Oryx Energies is one of Africa’s largest and longest-established independent providers of oil and gas products and services. An energy division of private investment group AOG, it supplies, stores and distributes the oil and gas products needed by consumers, industry and maritime operations across sub-Saharan Africa, including fuels, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), lubricants, bitumen and a specialised bunkering service.

It is a Swiss company, majority-owned by AOG, and has been responding to the evolving energy needs of the African sub-continent for almost 30 years. It is proud of its unparalleled depth of experience, knowledge and expertise, accumulated serving the energy needs of over twenty sub-Saharan countries.