African dash for gas

Investment Analysis Clubs Macro Economic Trends and Risks
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"Along with the DRC, African leaders from a range of countries, including Senegal, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, have ramped up support for gas in recent months following large fossil fuel discoveries in the Atlantic Ocean – positioning West Africa as one of the continent’s leading energy hubs…

"In 2017, British oil major BP and US operator Kosmos Energy discovered an estimated 15trn cubic feet of recoverable gas in the maritime area that borders Mauritania. The discovery led to the development of the $4.8bn Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) LNG project, shared between Mauritania and Senegal, with production slated for Q3 next year.

“In Ghana, British company Tullow Oil discovered a new gas reserve in June, which is estimated to hold between 1.5 to 2trn cubic feet of offshore gas. Italian hydrocarbon giant ENI announced a major oil and gas discovery in Côte d’Ivoire this year, increasing last year’s find of an estimated 2 billion barrels of oil and 2.4trn cubic feet of gas by up to 25%.”

DB2

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African countries face a conundrum. On the one hand they need to develop economically and industrially. On the other they must also meet their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally. This risks a conflict between climate mitigation ambitions and Africa’s development agenda…

My research tested how four factors affect climate policy making in sub-Saharan Africa. These are democracy, fossil fuel consumption, gross domestic product per capita, and total historical emissions…

I found that wealthier sub-Saharan African nations (measured by gross domestic product per capita) show lower levels of climate ambition. Nigeria and South Africa, for instance, are wealthier than many others in Africa. But they’re under political and economic pressure to expand energy access and industrial capacity. This can limit them from curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

DB2

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