The African Coalition for Trade & Investment in Natural Gas (ACTING) has announced the release and publication of its inaugural “State of Play: African Gas” report, providing the most comprehensive resource on sub-Saharan Africa’s natural gas markets
Chief amongst the report’s finding is the upcoming growth in gas-to-power generation capacity across sub-Saharan Africa. (Image source: DesignsWithDani/Pixabay)
As several African nations seek to increase the consumption and monetisation of natural gas across their economies, the ACTING report highlights that the continent remains one the lowest consumer of gas globally. Low gas penetration rates in sub-Saharan Africa contrast with the vast amount of natural gas reserves found onshore and offshore from Senegal to Mozambique and whose development could lift millions out of poverty and provide the resource the continent needs to industrialise.
By gathering several datasets in a single resource, ACTING’s “State of Play: African Gas” report combines the most up-to-date and accurate information on sub-Saharan African gas markets. It notably reveals that the growth of Africa’s natural gas consumption and production is set to be one of the world’s fastest until 2040 on the back of new LNG projects and strong policy support for natural gas consumption across industries, transport and power.
Chief amongst the report’s finding is the upcoming growth in gas-to-power generation capacity across sub-Saharan Africa. ACTING expects a 55% growth in grid-connected gas-to-power generation by 2025 on the back of greenfield and brownfield projects and the conversation of coal and diesel power plants to gas in Senegal and South Africa. West Africa is the region expected to see the biggest gas-to-power capacity addition by 2025, with at least 750MW in Senegal, 643MW in Côte d'Ivoire, 450MW in Nigeria, 200MW in Ghana, 150MW in Benin and 65MW in Togo.
“The inaugural report of ACTING lays the foundation for the kind of work and research the Coalition wishes the grow with its institutional and industry partners,” declared Mickael Vogel, director at Hawilti and coordinator of ACTING. “Information and data on gas markets in sub-Saharan Africa is extremely scarce, which negatively affects the ability of investors and developers to make proper deals and sound decisions. Now is the time for all stakeholders to come together and build the kind of trust and confidence the market needs to benefit the continent at large.”
