Subscribe & Follow

Advertise your job vacancies

Minister outlines SA's gas policy

19 May 2016

"In order to ensure the realisation of the vision of a re-industrialised economy, a higher and inclusive growth path and job creation in the South African economy, I have taken the decision to develop a comprehensive gas policy for South Africa," said energy minister, Tina Joemat-Pettersson in her address to the Oil & Gas Council Cape Town Conference.

She said the programme will be based on similar principles as South Africa’s independent power producer (IPP) renewables programme, and would include the principles of procurement transparency, competitive bidding, economic and socio-economic development and localisation requirements, while minimising the burden on the fiscus.

The Gas Policy will facilitate the development of the South African natural gas industry and market through ensuring the establishment of anchor demand from gas-to-power through the IPP programme.

“It will provide context for our new Integrated Resource Plan as well as the future Gas Industrialisation Policy under development, as the Gas Policy will enable and fast-track the development of non-gas-to-power gas demand. Initial gas-to-power together with future non-gas-to-power will ensure that upstream investment in both regional and indigenous sources will be encouraged.”

Sustainable gas economy

She added that a well-defined gas policy is a key requirement to guide developments towards a sustainable natural gas economy. A key strategic focus will be to enable the deliberate short-term development of initial supply of and demand for gas, much of which is latent and unserved at present, in parallel with the actions aimed at expediting the development of longer-term supply.

The Gas Policy and initial gas-to-power IPP programme will:

Contribute to certainty in terms of energy security, diversity and stability; and

Create an investor friendly regulatory landscape and through upstream midstream and downstream investment opportunities ensure private sector participation in the oil and gas infrastructure development.

Proactive approach

“The Gas Policy and initial gas-to-power IPP programme also represent a proactive rather than a reactive approach – we are planning and shaping the path towards future indigenous and regional gas developments in South Africa rather than waiting for it to happen.”

“Furthermore, we are viewing the exploitation of our indigenous gas - coal bed methane and shale gas - as well as regional natural gas resources in the broader context of regional integration.”

“Neighbouring countries such as Mozambique are strategic partners that possess complimentary clean energy resources that fit our energy strategy. Therefore there is logic for supporting the development of gas pipeline infrastructure from Mozambique into South Africa,” Joemat-Pettersson concluded.