FIFI PETERS: Let’s speak about power issues now. My mom despatched me a WhatsApp a bit of earlier, saying that there was load shedding the place we keep. I suppose it makes a dialog round power and power safety essential at this juncture in our historical past, in our current day.
We have for this dialog Dr Phindile Masangane. She is the CEO of the Petroleum Agency South Africa on the Market Update for extra on power, and extra particularly the Africa Energy Outlook that was launched a bit of earlier at present, the report for 2022. Dr Phindile, thanks a lot on your time. As a place to begin, your key takeaways from the report and what it means for the way South Africa ought to go forward?
Dr PHINDILE MASANGANE: Thank you Fifi, and thanks for inviting the Petroleum Agency SA, generally often called Pasa, to your present. The key takeaway for us from this Africa Energy Outlook is actually the theme that it has for Africa. They known as it ‘a decade of transformation’. Africa should shift gear. And they’re saying so from the idea that Africa has traditionally used most of its oil and gas to energy different areas, and due to this fact we had been exporting the oil and gas that we’re producing within the area, which undermined our financial growth as a continent. That is why they’re saying it’s time for Africa to shift gear and rework and meet up with transformation.
FIFI PETERS: It’s fairly attention-grabbing, as a result of what we now have seen lately, ever since that Ukraine/Russia conflict broke out, is numerous motion from nations in Europe. I believe Germany comes to thoughts – visiting the continent, signing potential future power offers and gas offers because it tries to cut back its relationship and its reliance on Russia. What do you make about that? Any issues?
Dr PHINDILE MASANGANE: None in any respect as a result of in case you look, Fifi, on latest days there’ve been numerous important [gas] discoveries within the African continent. The report mentions up to 177 tcf [trillion cubic feet]. That is ample for us to proceed with our exports, however we simply want to flip round and guarantee that the first manufacturing is used for growing Africa. So we do nonetheless have the chance to export the oil and gas that we produce on the continent, whereas ensuring that we’re intentional about utilizing numerous the produce for our financial growth reindustrialisation.
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FIFI PETERS: Just within the transition in the direction of a greener, cleaner future, for many individuals, oil and gas shouldn’t be a part of that – or not?
Dr PHINDILE MASANGANE: And that’s precisely what the report demystifies, Fifi, as a result of I believe there is a false impression. Sometimes I believe it’s deliberate that using oil and gas is not in line with that, is not in line with a decarbonisation technique. So the report unpacks that.
For instance, I’m positive you might be conscious that greater than 600 million folks on the African continent don’t have entry to trendy power applied sciences, notably electrical energy. And that’s why we’re termed the ‘dark continent’. So what then do they use for his or her home power wants? Some of them use biomass, which leads to deforestation. So in the event that they had been to use gas – whether or not it’s LPG or pure gas – for cooking or no matter type of gas, that in itself is decarbonisation, as a result of then you definitely arrest the unfavourable affect of deforestation.
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Secondly, in Africa, as we all know, we’re nonetheless very a lot on inner combustion engines. So we nonetheless use petrol and diesel.
Our uptake by way of electrical automobiles is nonetheless low. Now we’ve seen a pattern the place you employ heavy automobiles, you place the heavy automobiles on pure gas and that reduces your carbon emissions by greater than 30%.
Importantly, Fifi, you cut back all of your ‘socks and knocks’ [SO2 and NOx; sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides] in addition to your tremendous particulate matter, which truly are your air pollution, which soiled your quick atmosphere.
So using gas as a transport gas itself is usually a decarbonisation technique. So that’s why we are saying that gas is a thoughtful gas.
So using oil and gas will be a part of the decarbonisation. I believe that folks give a false narrative that it can’t be a part of your decarbonisation technique – and this report places to relaxation that argument.
FIFI PETERS: Can you additionally simply, maybe lastly, give us a sign of the form of expressions of curiosity to probe for gas in South Africa, and particularly since we now have seen giant firms attempting to achieve this, and being confronted with resistance from those that suppose that they’re not doing so responsibly for the group and the atmosphere, and all kinds of entanglements taking part in out in court docket. Has that form of motion damage the curiosity and the attractiveness of exploring for gas in South Africa’s market?
Dr PHINDILE MASANGANE: It has raised critical issues, however luckily South Africa’s petroleum useful resource endowment is fairly glorious. So we haven’t seen a ‘hurtful’ discouragement, however after all it does concern our traders.
On the optimistic aspect the latest discovery is encouraging funding. You will know that we’ve bought important finds on our south coast by Total Energy. They’ve found 3.6 tcf. Just to put that into context on your listeners, you’ll know that PetroSA was constructed, was sustained over 20 years, by 1.3 tcf. Here you might be in South Africa now having 3.6 tcf.
A second instance is the Renergen Tetra4 challenge which, as you understand, is coming into business manufacturing in August this 12 months, a mere 4 months away.
That will put South Africa on the map by way of exporting helium. So there pure gas after we extracted it has fairly a excessive focus of helium, and so they’re liquifying that and exporting it. At the identical time, they’ll produce power within the nation.
So these are attracting tasks within the nation, despite the unfavourable actions that you just’ve seen as effectively.
FIFI PETERS: Good to know, Dr Phindile. Thanks a lot for becoming a member of the Market Update and demystifying a number of the views on the market, notably pertaining to gas for us. Dr Phindile Masangane, the CEO of Petroleum Agency SA.