GAS SUB-SECTOR

  1.       Methane Gas


Overview

Methane Gas is extracted in Lake Kivu which contains an enormous amount of methane dissolved in its deep water. The Lake Kivu methane gas reserves are estimated at around 55 billion cubic meters with an estimated renewal rate of about 120 million cubic meters every year.

The resource is equally shared between the Government of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo with a power output estimated at 700 MW.

Thus, the Government of Rwanda has prioritized the production of electricity from this unique resource to meet the growing electricity demand. 

RURA role

The Regulatory Authority is mandated to regulate the Lake Kivu Gas sub-sector among other regulated sectors pursuant to the Law Nº 09/2013 of 01/03/2013 in order to:
i.    Ensure that the sub-sector functions in the most efficient, sustainable and effective manner;
ii.    Facilitate and encourage private sector participation in investments in methane gas projects;
iii.    Ensure compliance by operators with the laws and regulations governing their activities
iv.    Promote the interest of users;

The functions of the Regulatory Authority (RURA) with regards to Natural gas sub-sector has mainly been of monitoring and conducting investigations in relation to technical and safety issues. RURA has also been collaborating with other Government entities in the review of different studies and harmonization of regulatory tools regarding Lake Kivu Methane Gas exploitation projects.

2.    Other industrial gases

Overview

All gaseous fluids under high pressure need to be manufactured, stored, transported and distributed in a well-controlled manner, so as to prevent hazards associated with their poor handling.

Medical gases among other industrial gases (Oxy-acetylene, acetylene, ammonia, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, etc) can be associated with a number of dangers and safety risks if not properly handled according to standards in place. Such industrial gases are flammable & explosive and therefore require proper regulatory system.

RURA role:

RURA mandate is to regulate industrial gases including medical gases to ensure adequate quality of product distributed to consumers and fair competition among gas operators. In collaboration with Rwanda Standards Board (RSB), a technical committee on Biomedical Engineering composed by key stakeholders was established in order to facilitate the adoption of relevant standards. RURA is currently in the process of establishing a sound regulatory framework that will govern activities in this sub-sectors. In addition, regular inspections are conducted to operators’ facilities to check compliance with standards.