How early wells revealed commercial gas potential
By the late 2000s, Aminex had weathered its first Tanzanian drills. Nyuni-1 had shown the system worked, and Likonde-1 had hinted at deeper promise. What the company still lacked was the magic word: commercial.
That breakthrough came not far from Songo Songo Island. In 2007, the company spudded Kiliwani-1, followed soon after by Kiliwani North-1 (KN-1). This was a decisive moment: KN-1 cut through a 60-metre gas-bearing interval and flowed at eye-catching rates — around 40 million cubic feet per day on test. For the first time, Aminex could point to a discovery that didn’t just prove hydrocarbons, but suggested they could be produced and sold.
This was the beginning of Kiliwani North as we know it — a modest field in size, but a giant step in confidence.
Behind the drill bits, the company kept building its knowledge base. Seismic campaigns across Nyuni and the surrounding licences tightened up the picture of the subsurface. New partners came in: RAK Gas, Bounty Oil & Gas, Solo Oil — each taking a slice of the action and, in turn, spreading both the cost and the potential reward.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing. Aminex still faced the usual hurdles of a junior explorer: raising cash, meeting licence obligations, and persuading the market that Tanzania was worth the wait. But KN-1 gave them something solid — a well that flowed, a resource that could be monetised, a discovery that put Aminex on the map.
For shareholders, this was the first time “production” stopped being a dream and became a near-term possibility. It still needed paperwork, partners, and infrastructure. But the direction of travel was clear: Aminex had a discovery capable of feeding into Tanzania’s emerging national gas network.
➡️ Next time: Chapter Three — Licence to Produce. We’ll follow Aminex as the Tanzanian government formally stamps approval on Kiliwani North, granting the development licence that turns discovery into destiny.