Core hole drilling site at dawn. Kinetico describes the Amersfoort project as South Africa's largest onshore LNG project.Photo provided
The development of natural gas reserves in Amersfoort, Mpumalanga, has the potential to reshape South Africa’s energy dynamics and play a pivotal role in the country’s journey towards a more diverse and sustainable energy future. Attention has been paid.
However, environmental groups question whether gas is a green energy source and whether it will contribute to South Africa's efforts in the global fight against climate change.
In 2023, Australian gas exploration company Kinetico Energy and Industry South Africa (IDC) jointly signed a liquefied natural gas (LNG) development project in Amersfoort. The town is located near Volksrust in the border region of Mpumalanga, KwaZulu and Natal, the heart of the country's energy centre.
Kinetico said the project is South Africa's largest onshore LNG project and aims to initially produce the equivalent of 50 megawatts of energy, expanding to 500 megawatts by recovering more than 2 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves. He explains that he plans to do so. . LNG is natural gas that has been cooled to a liquid form for easy and safe unpressurized storage and transportation.
IDC funding
Tshepo Ramodibe, head of corporate affairs at IDC, said the discovery of the Amersfoort gas reserves came after more than 20 years of extensive exploration and drilling by various parties.
He said the Colhan project is still in the development stage, with confirmatory drilling operations and completion of production rights applications underway.
“IDC will provide development funding to the project to complete the pilot phase to confirm the availability of gas reserves,” Ramodibe explained.
The budget for the pilot phase is R155 million, with IDC committing up to R70 million to this phase, with the remainder being provided by Afro Energy, a subsidiary of Kinetico Energy.
Asked what makes Mpumalanga an attractive location for onshore LNG investment, Ramodibe said the project is close to local markets, particularly Sasol, and the potential for power plants in the province to be converted to gas. I mentioned something.
South Africa's other onshore LNG project, the Lenergen project, consists of exploration and production rights to a 187,000 hectare gas field near Welkom, Virginia and Teunissen, Free State. Full production is expected to be completed by 2027.
transition fuel
Ramodibe acknowledged that gas is not a renewable resource, saying, “Gas is a resource that has the potential to alleviate energy shortages while South Africa transitions to renewable energy.”
Department of Mineral Resources and Energy spokesperson Makosonke Buthelezi asserted that natural gas forms part of South Africa's energy mix, as outlined in the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2019). He said gas is a global transition fuel, providing the flexibility needed for cost-effective power generation.
“In this regard, the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy is supporting the development of gas infrastructure to promote gas exploration and production and increase the country's power generation capacity,” Buthelezi said, adding that gas is a baseload energy source. He emphasized that it is an important resource for South Africa and will strengthen South Africa's energy capabilities. Supporting energy security and sustainable industrialization.
But lawyers at the Center for Environmental Rights have warned against the development of large-scale gas power infrastructure in South Africa, saying it could have a negative impact on decarbonization efforts and climate risks.
“Countries' situations in this regard vary depending on their resources and existing infrastructure. However, all countries need to move as quickly as possible towards clean, low-carbon energy supply and power generation,” the Center said. the lawyer said in an interview.
“South Africa needs to move away from coal as soon as possible as we build our renewable energy capacity. Of course, this cannot be done immediately and the existing functioning coal fleet is one of the mitigation options. “This existing fleet will provide the electricity generation needed to supplement renewable energy as it is built and operational,” they said. Ta.
According to the center, renewable energy can be intermittent (for example, when solar or wind resources are limited), so “peak-time” generation, such as that currently provided by diesel turbines, is not possible. It may be necessary to make up for the shortage depending on the power source. . The group said that some models suggest from a technical standpoint that this peaking could be done with gas-fired power.
Renewable energy challenges
Kinetico Energy CEO Nick de Block has expressed doubts about whether renewable energy can replace coal in South Africa. He stressed the urgent need to promote nuclear and gas power generation on a large scale and pointed to Europe's challenges in transitioning directly to renewable energy.
“The cleanest energy solutions currently available to us around the world include geothermal, hydro, nuclear and gas. In South Africa, that means we need to promote nuclear and gas on a large scale. We can't expect local power from something we don't have,” de Block said.
He said the global average output from weather-related energy sources is around 25% of installed capacity, often down to single digits.
“Europe's attempts to transition directly to renewable energy have resulted in the lowest availability and most expensive electricity in the continent's history,” he added. “They are turning back to coal and diesel to fill the gap clearly left by 'renewables', which are by no means clean or green.”
Mr de Block acknowledged that gas is not renewable, but agreed with the European Union's recent classification of gas as “green”. While not cheaper than coal, gas is substantially cleaner, greener and more efficient to burn, he said.
He highlighted Mpumalanga's strategic location for gas and the need for South Africa to import gas due to limited domestic LNG production.
“South Africa needs to evolve from being a 100% gas importing country to accommodate domestic supplies from both offshore and onshore sources,” he said.
Communities affected
Asked whether those affected by the project had been consulted, de Brocq said: “We have a duty to communicate with stakeholders and landowners and share our plans at various stages of exploration and production rights applications.
“We went through that process a while ago…and we'll be meeting with them again in the future as we evolve as producers. Landowners and farmers know we're delivering a net benefit to them. It needs to be clearly understood.”
Unlike solar power plants, which provide intermittent electricity and require vast amounts of land space, gas production occurs through small boreholes in the ground approximately every 400 meters, so the impact on agriculture is negligible. It can be done,” he said.
“While landowners do not own the gas under their feet, which is 100% owned by the state, as rights holders we want to ensure that landowners benefit from what we do in the form of cash consideration for access. “We believe that the same goes for the provision of paid services such as accommodation, plant rental and road construction,” de Block added.
a promising step
Njok Ayuk Eyon, chief executive of the African Energy Chamber, praised the Amersfoort project in a recent op-ed editorial as “a promising step on Africa's long road to a just energy transition.”
He emphasized the importance of gas as the way forward for African countries, and said that if the continent is no longer able to benefit from its own natural resources, there will be a need to build wind and solar power infrastructure. Asked where the money would come from, “natural gas is the most important of them.” ”.
“We are being told to play a game of catch-up with our hands tied, leaving our natural resources in the ground while the world's developed countries continue to exploit non-renewable natural wealth. It means put it away.
“With hundreds of millions of Africans still living without access to electricity, we are expected to be among the first to build wind farms, solar farms and hydroelectric dams,” he said. wrote.
“Who will build the basic infrastructure needed to support it? Developed countries are quick to promise 'we will' but are reluctant to follow through on their promises.” Furthermore, their foreign “aid” is often focused on alleviating the symptoms of Africa's economic and energy poverty rather than solving its causes. ”
We contacted the African Energy Chamber for further comment on the Amersfoort LNG project, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Thabo Molelekwa is associate journalist Oxpeckers Investigative Environmental Journalism Graduate #PowerTracker Professional Support and Training Program. This research was supported by the African Climate Foundation. new economy hub.
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