Drill drill drill
Exploiting oil and gas resources for economic growth
SOUTH AFRICA: Describing the potential of extracting and monetising the country’s oil and gas reserves as a potential economic game changer, Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, Gwede Mantashe told delegates at the 4th Southern Africa Oil and Gas Conference in Cape Town yesterday that tapping into these resources would help eliminate the need to raise taxes.
Speaking on the back of the recent 2025 Budget delivered by National Treasury, Minister Mantashe emphasised the need to “aggressively pursue oil and gas, coal and renewables” and not be swayed by foreign NGO’s wanting to veto development.
“Gas and oil have played second fiddle to other energy sources for far too long in our country and on the continent.”
“South Africa is endowed with an abundance of energy sources which need to be commercialised to drive inclusive economic growth, job creation and development. Gas and oil have played second fiddle to other energy sources for far too long in our country and on the continent. This is not correct as we see how these energy sources continue to drive development and industrialisation elsewhere,” he said adding that the government is committed to a mix of energy sources.
Offshore interest
Mantashe confirmed that recent discoveries off the coast of Namibia would help accelerate the South African government’s intention to promote oil exploration in its own waters.
“We believe developing the country’s oil and gas resources could boost the country’s economic growth rate to 5% and possibly 8%,” he told the conference.
“Major discoveries off the coast of Namibia that extend southwards into South African waters have shown that the region has substantial unexplored reserves and has drawn great interest from major petroleum companies. TotalEnergies, Shell and Galp have made eight discoveries across three blocks in Namibia’s Orange Basin, representing an estimated 3.5 billion barrels of potentially recoverable oil.”
Mantashe emphasised the need to explore both onshore and offshore in an effort to reduce South Africa’s dependency on foreign oil and mitigate the risk caused by geopolitical tensions.
Setting the scene for the remainder of the conference, the Minister also noted that the establishment of the South African National Petroleum Company (SANPC) was a strategic move to actively pursue oil and gas projects.
He also referred to the need to finalise the Gas Master Plan to contribute to an integrated energy planning approach for the country as outlined in the updated Integrated Resources Plan.
“It provides a framework for the role of natural gas in the energy mix and gives policy direction to industry,” he said.
While admitting that Europe’s need to diversify its gas supplies offered opportunities for foreign revenue, he warned against the danger of exporting all of the gas at the expense of domestic and regional markets.
“It is imperative for SADC countries to be resolute in their efforts to unlock oil and gas exploration and development. This further presents SADC countries with an opportunity to determine conditions that will alleviate global oil and gas prices by developing their own resources,” he said concluding that the growth of the oil and gas sectors could provide economic prosperity for the Southern African region.
"Our attitude is to drill, drill drill," he added.
PHOTO: Minister of Minerals and Petroleum Resources, Gwede Mantashe arrives at the 4th Southern African Oil and Gas Conference in Cape Town. (© Maritime Review Africa 2025)
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