PetroSA, South Africa’s state-owned oil and gas company, is gearing up for the arrival of gas shipments from Mozambique’s ENH later this year.
This move is part of PetroSA’s strategy to boost energy reserves and mitigate potential shortages.
Having secured a gas trading license from regulators in March, PetroSA wasted no time in finalizing a deal for an initial 2 petajoules of gas annually, with plans to increase this to 200 petajoules in the future.
This significant supply will cater to various industrial gas users, including major companies like ArcelorMittal.
The urgency in securing additional gas stems from Sasol’s warning to its customers about impending supply constraints as its Mozambican gas fields deplete.
PetroSA aims to establish a joint venture with ENH to attract potential gas clients in South Africa’s energy-deficient market.
Additionally, PetroSA intends to replicate this joint venture model in Mossel Bay to trade gas from offshore fields discovered by TotalEnergies.
Sesakho Magadla, PetroSA’s Chief Operating Officer, highlighted plans for joint ventures with Total for the Brulpadda field and Block 9 development.
However, PetroSA Gas Trading will serve as the primary entity for gas trading within the group.
The gas sales agreement with ENH involves importing gas through the ROMPCO pipeline, connecting the Pande and Temane fields to South Africa.
Negotiations are ongoing for gas transportation agreements with Sasol and ROMPCO, with technical studies assessing the viability of transporting PetroSA’s gas to various locations near the existing pipeline network.
