DODOMA, Aug. 11 -- TANZANIA has explored only 30 per cent of its identified oil and gas prospective areas, leaving more than 370,000 square kilometres yet to be assessed for possible petroleum discoveries.

The Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority (PURA) said yesterday that about 534,000 square kilometres had been identified as having potential for oil and gas, but preliminary exploration had so far covered only around 162,000 square kilometres.

PURA Director General, Mr Charles Sangweni, disclosed this while speaking to journalists at the just-ended Nanenane Agricultural Exhibition in Dodoma.

He said Tanzania had been conducting petroleum exploration since the early 1950s and that the identified prospective areas were largely covere...