The Republic of Mozambique Pipeline Investments Company (ROMPCO) will be a key participant at the Africa Energy Indaba 2025 from 4 to 6 March at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) in Cape Town, South Africa. This premier event serves as a pivotal platform for energy professionals, policymakers, and investors to engage in discussions and collaborations aimed at addressing Africa’s energy challenges and opportunities.
“These events assist with networking as it gets industry players in the same place at the same time to discuss issues of mutual interest. Some of the discussions lead to business partnerships and potential unblocking of challenges,” comments Motlokwe Sebake, GM of Commercial and Stakeholder Management at ROMPCO.
“The Africa Energy Indaba is a catalyst for partnerships, investment, and policy alignment that directly support ROMPCO’s growth, sustainability, and role in Africa’s energy transition. Our aim is to also position us as a leader in gas transmission in the region,” adds Sebake.
ROMPCO believes that natural gas is critical for a sustainable energy mix in Africa. Countries that have abundant natural gas resources include Angola, Mozambique, Tanzania, Egypt, Morocco, Libya, and Nigeria. However, some or most of these resources are considered stranded, as they are far from markets where they are needed.
Natural gas is one of the cleaner options of the dispatchable energy when compared with other fossil fuels, as it has the lowest carbon footprint of all hydrocarbon fuels. Coal has the highest greenhouse gas emissions, followed by crude oil and then natural gas when used to generate the same amount of energy. The combustion of natural gas emits about half as much carbon dioxide as coal and 30% less than oil, as well as having far fewer pollutants per unit of energy delivered.
As the world transitions from hydrocarbon fuel sources to renewable energy, natural gas – due to its lower carbon footprint – is the best fossil fuel to bridge the gap until alternate renewable fuel sources such as batteries and alternative energy sources like green hydrogen become more economically viable to replace natural gas as a fuel.
While battery technology is still too expensive, gas to power (being self-dispatchable) is the best complementary technology to non-self-dispatchable renewable energy such as wind and solar, which currently makes up 9 GW of South Africa’s total energy mix.
Sebake reveals that ROMPCO is in the process of defining its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) baseline to assess its current practices and performance on various sustainability and ethical issues, including its environmental impact. “The baseline assessment will assist us to measure business risks and opportunities going forward to ensure we improve our carbon footprint across our supply chain.”
Meanwhile, natural gas plays a significant role in the South African economy. According to the Industrial Gas Users Association of Southern Africa (IGUA-SA), the current revenue is more than R500 billion a year, with over 70 000 people employed in the sector. Gas can be used for heating in industries, hospitals, and households, and can also support growth in the transport sector through the use of compressed natural gas (CNG).
Small-scale LNG can allow for natural gas to be transported to key demand areas to substitute expensive and higher green-house gas fuels such as coal and diesel. This will be the initial driver to pave the way for implementation of long-term gas infrastructure that will enable an energy transition to green hydrogen in the future.
“There is currently a high consumption of diesel in the mining sector that can be replaced by natural gas,” points out Sebake. A number of mining companies have transitioned to natural gas to reduce costs and to also improve their carbon footprint. Reduced costs ensure a longer operational life of mine and ongoing employment.
In addition, new demand is coming in from low load factor gas-to-power facilities, which require the capacity for baseload gas as a power source, even though this may not be used all the time. This is likely to take up pipeline capacity, requiring additional investment to enable the implementation of new power generation facilities. The costs involved may initially seem prohibitive, but ultimately this will be beneficial in adding complementary power stations to support renewable energy.
Sebake says that diversification through virtual pipeline gas (small-scale LNG and CNG) is important to ensure revenue diversification and increase the market reach for natural gas, namely LNG and/or CNG, which may be transported to beyond the current physical infrastructure, thereby contributing to ROMPCO’s sustainability.
“ROMPCO is investigating potential investment opportunities with consideration for innovation in construction technology to save costs and build quicker, as well as using potential composite materials that are more durable, less corrosive, and a lot lighter to transport, install, and maintain,” says Sebake.
He concludes: “As a cross-border gas transmission company, ROMPCO is aware of the importance of regional collaboration, which we encourage. We are continuously engaging with both governments and participate in all relevant conferences, such as Africa Energy Indaba, as well as key delegate meetings between South Africa and Mozambique and other Southern African countries such as Namibia, Tanzania, and Angola.”
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Author: Richalda De Wet from NGAGE Marketing on behalf of ROMPCO.
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