Current share of the cake below 1%
RAY SMUTS
IF THE Western Cape were to capture just 10% of total trade from the burgeoning West African oil and gas exploration sector, its economy would be sitting pretty. But as things now stand the slice of the cake is paltry indeed - probably below 1%.
This emerged at OilAfrica 2004, the first sub-Saharan oil, gas and petrochemicals exhibition and conference, held last week at the new Cape Town International Conference Centre.
The offshore oilfields of West Africa are the fastest growing exploration and production areas in the world today, currently attracting expenditure of $10 billion per annum. And this impacts significantly on the economy of Cape Town and the Western Cape because of its strategic geographic location, says Herman Jonker, special projects manager in the Directorate of Industry Development.
Syeve Hrabar, operations director (Africa and the Middle east) for Swift Servios Tecnicos SA, says that while major international oil companies are very positive about Africa’s future role in oil supply and are looking at South Africa - particularly the Western Cape - as a stable base from which to manage and supply their oil and gas field activities, local companies are estimated to be supplying less than 1% of the sector’s needs.
Estimating that construction of platforms, towers and associated equipment should run to some R6,59 billion within ten years, Hrabar makes the point that a 10% stake in this business could create a flourishing industry, work for up to 10 000 skilled workers and around 80 000 indirect job opportunities.
The large US oil corporations are intent on outlaying billions of dollars over the next five years - $50 billion alone between Exxon Mobil and Chevron Texaco - on top of which the US has recently announced that in an endeavour to minimise its reliance on the Middle East, it will source 25% of its oil needs from Africa within a decade.
Analysing each port in turn, Hrabar says that in addition to Cape Town and Saldanha’s close proximity to the oil and gas activity, they are not only safe but spacious enough for the building of large modules, platforms and towers, in addition to undertaking the necessary repairs.
