Mantashe allays fears of looming SA gas crisis amid protests against continued use of the fuel

Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe addresses the 16th annual Africa Energy Indaba at Cape Town International Convention Centre on 5 March 2024.

Extinction Rebellion and the Green Connection protesters said investing in new offshore gas projects went against South Africa’s international commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, would damage ocean resources and biodiversity and threaten coastal public property and livelihoods. The participant claimed that year after year the same conversations and speeches were made at energy conferences with little to no action, resulting in the supply of domestic gas being stifled in SA.

The International Energy Agency has said that natural gas, which emits less carbon than most other fossil fuels, has a limited role as a transition fuel from coal to renewable energy sources. However, the agency said natural gas power generation may still be needed as backup for variable wind and solar power.

“The PCC not only states that it’s perfectly technically feasible to run our electricity system on renewable energy, but it’s also least-cost. So why would we go for the more expensive option?” Scott-Goldman said.on the sidelines of the gas forum, Wits Seismic Research Centre director Dr Musa Manzi, who was also a speaker at the event, said that currently, renewable energy could not sustainably power South Africa.

“But the problem is that gas is 90% methane, and methane is a very potent greenhouse gas, 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over the first 20 years of its life. They’ve now found that there’s leaks of methane all the way along the supply chain,” she said.“Methane, apart from carbon, can also be dangerous in the short term. Those are things that should be looked at … considering those risks could happen throughout the production process .

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