Page 12 - AfrElec Week 49

AfrElec FUELS AfrElec

Mozambique launches new

fuel storage terminal

POLAND MOZAMBIQUE has opened a new fuel stor- cooking, reducing the use of firewood and
age terminal in the southern city of Matola – a charcoal, the president added. This will help cut
project the government hopes will expand the deforestation and improve the health of people,
transit of imported fuel to neighbouring coun- mostly women, who cook household meals, he
tries inland. said.
The facility was inaugurated in a ceremony by “We are in the presence of infrastructure
Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Decem- whose contribution to the economy goes far
ber 3. It was built by Portugal’s Galp and Kuwait- beyond the direct activities that arise from its
based Independent Petroleum Group (IPG), at a business,” Nyusi said. “This infrastructure will
cost of $100mn. help the energy sector to respond to its chal-
Nyusi said the terminal would make Mozam- lenges and to cope with the marked increase in
bique more competitive as a transit route for fuels national and regional demand.”
supplies heading to countries inland. Mozam- The terminal can store up to 60,000 cubic
bique lacks any refining capacity, importing metres of liquid fuels. According to its website,
around 1.7mn cubic metres per year of petro- Galp intends to commission a second storage
leum products, the president said. Neighbour- facility in the central city of Beira next year, with
ing Zambia and Zimbabwe also receive fuel via a 75,000-cubic metre capacity. It operates two
Mozambican ports. other facilities in the southern African country
The new terminal will also expand Mozam- already. The company also has an extensive fuel
bican households’ access to LPG as a fuel in distribution network.™

NEWS IN BRIEF

RENEWABLES from the 202tcf recorded in 2019. the long-term as it would emerge as a key
The Minister of State for Petroleum competitor to gas consumption in the next
Renewable energy Resources, Timipre Sylva, had also declared two decades while achieving a 10 per cent
that aggressive effort would be to unlock
share in the total primary energy demand by
breakthrough threatens revenue and economic potential of gas even as 2050.
the government declared 2020 the Year of Gas.
Even in countries like Nigeria, where gas-
Nigeria’s gas investments Corporation (NNPC) and the Nigeria fired power plants are key electricity sources,
The Nigerian National Petroleum
industry players, as well as consumers, are
Efforts by the Nigerian government to harness LNG Limited (NLNG) similarly signed already looking towards renewable options.
its 203.16 trillion cubic feet (TCF) gas reserves a pact for the engineering, procurement Most distribution companies as well as NNPC
to spur economic activities and boost revenue and construction (EPC) contracts for the have signed contracts for renewable energy
may remain elusive as an emerging energy LNG train seven, triggering the effective projects.
solution, especially renewable energy and commencement of the detailed design and The United Nations Environment
energy storage, are projected to keep reserves construction phase of the multi-billion Programme (UNEP) had said global
unharnessed across the world. dollar project. On completion, the project is investment in new renewable energy capacity
The ongoing progress on the expansion expected to raise the plant’s current six-train hit $2.6 trillion by the end of 2019 to close out
of infrastructure for the Liquefied Natural capacity by 35 per cent, from the extant 22mn a record-breaking decade in renewable energy
Gas, especially the train seven of the Nigerian tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 30 MTPA. investment.
LNG Limited, also faces fresh hurdles. Wood But Woodmac insisted that gas Wood Mackenzie Principal Analyst,
Mackenzie’s report released yesterday showed demand would come under pressure from Kateryna Filippenko noted that weaker global
that over three quarters or 77 per cent of new breakthrough investment in renewables, gas demand creates space for limited new
LNG supply are at risk. energy storage in the power sector, efficiency developments, stressing that the development
The Federal Government had earlier in improvement and adoption of new signaled a significant challenge for companies
the year put the nation’s total gas reserves at technologies in non-power sectors. considering final investment decision (FID)
203.16 trillion cubic feet (TCF), representing Also, the think-tank noted that green on new projects.
a marginal increase of 1.16tcf or 0.57 per cent hydrogen would become a game-changer in

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 49 10•December•2020