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http://www.bdlive.co.za/business/en...s-oil-and-gas-services-sector-hub-davies-says

SA should become region’s oil and gas services sector hub, Davies say

A GREATER focus on the use of gas as a pillar of industrialisation is one of the new elements in the latest industrial policy action plan (Ipap), launched on Monday by Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies.
The government envisaged that SA would become a hub for the regional oil and gas services sector, he said. A gas utilisation model for SA and the region has been developed and a series of regional projects in the gas sector have been identified.
The Department of Trade and Industry is to launch a dedicated gas industrialisation unit next week to drive the programme in collaboration with other government departments and industry stakeholders. An action plan for the unit has already been developed by a working group consisting of departmental officials, industry experts and representatives of Sasol, working closely with the Department of Energy.
"The Southern African region is fast growing into an oil and gas jurisdiction, led by major on-and off-shore gas finds in Mozambique, Tanzania, Botswana and Namibia — together with significant potential for substantial hydrocarbon resources in SA," Department of Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said at the launch of the plan in Benoni.
"In this context, there is great potential both for cheaper, less carbon-intensive energy generation and for the utilisation of gas for up(stream) and downstream industrialisation."
The Ipap document notes that the scale of the offshore gas fields found off Mozambique, which are estimated to have between 200-trillion cubic feet and 250-trillion cubic feet is of significance for the region. It also refers to the way in which the exploitation of cheap shale gas in the US revitalised sections of the manufacturing industry.
The minister noted that the political complexities of the region would require very careful policy development, planning and coordination to unlock the full potential of a regional gas economy. The lack of developed transportation corridors and gas utilisation infrastructure in the region would also be a constraint.
The Ipap document also observes that the fall in the oil price over the last year would constrain the capacity of the upstream industry to invest in exploration and production but was favourable for purchasing liquid natural gas given the low input prices.
The new Ipap for 2016-17 to 2018-19 introduces a medium-term programme aimed at leveraging natural gas as both a source of power generation and a driver of industrial diversification.
The Transnet National Ports Authority has already issued requests for proposals for the import, storage and reticulation of liquid petroleum gas, which Mr Davies said was a first step in the enablement of a gas market.
The minister said the Ipap 2016 continued the department’s drive to reindustrialise the economy. The targeted industrial financing and incentive support placed more emphasis on export credit and export credit insurance to support the country’s export effort. It also focused more on sector-specific rather than generalised incentives. In particular sector-specific incentives will be designed for the agro-processing and rail components sectors.