South Africa’s plan to build its first liquefied natural gas import terminal has gained fresh momentum after an American oil giant signed a preliminary agreement to supply fuel to the project, marking another step in the country’s search for reliable alternatives to coal.
ExxonMobil has entered into an initial agreement with the Zululand Energy Terminal (ZET), a proposed LNG import facility at Richards Bay on South Africa’s east coast that is expected to play a central role in the country’s evolving energy mix.
The agreement follows a separate deal signed earlier this month between state-owned utility Eskom and ZET to support a planned 3,000-megawatt gas-to-power project in Richards Bay, one of the largest gas-fired power initiatives under consideration in South Africa.
Taken together, the two agreements suggest that South Africa’s long-delayed LNG ambitions are beginning to move beyond planning and towards execution.
The country has spent years trying to balance two competing priorities: reducing its dependence on coal while ensuring it does not return to the severe electricity shortages that once crippled businesses, factories and households.
