Ever since we pioneered the monetisation of the Pande and Temane gas fields which had been stranded for over 30 years, Mozambique has been a heartland of Sasol’s oil and gas strategy. For a decade we have processed gas from the Pande and Temane fields in a Central Processing Facility (CPF) and transported it via an 8.5-km pipeline to gas markets in South Africa and Mozambique. This was made possible through our partnership with the Companhia Moçambicana de Hidrocarbonetos (CMH) and International Finance Corporate (IFC).

In Gabon SEPI has a 27,75% interest in the Etame Marin Permit, operated by Houston-Based VAALCO Energy. Gross oil production of sweet crude oil of about 20 000 barrels per day is realised from the Etame, Ebouri and Avouma oil fields. 

In the exploration licence AC/P 52 (SEPI – 45% interest) in the Browse Basin offshore north-western Australia, SEPI and partners have completed a partial farm-out to Shell, who is now the new operator of the license, prior to the drilling of the Cronus prospect.

In December 2010, SEPI acquired a 50% stake in the Farrell Creek shale gas assets and the associated gas-gathering systems and processing facility of Talisman Energy in the Montney Basin in British Columbia, Canada. In March 2011, SPI acquired a 50% stake in Talisman’s high-quality Cypress A shale gas assets. However, in November 2013, Talisman, announced that they would be selling a portion of their Montney acreage to Progress Energy Canada Ltd (Progress). The Progress deal does not change our immediate development plans in North America and further investments into the future.

We converted a Technical Co-operation Permit Offshore Durban and Zululand basins to an Exploration Right (ER 236). The ER 236 Exploration Right has an area of 82 117 square kilometres in water depths ranging from 50 to 3 200 metres. About 4 800km of a 6 000km 2D seismic survey has been completed, with the remainder planned to be acquired in the second half of 2014.

In May 2013, together with our 50% partner PetroSA, we were granted a technical co-operation permit (TCP) by PASA for Block 3A/4A in the offshore Orange basin along South Africa’s west coast. With PetroSA, we are conducting a regional study of the area, which will determine whether we apply to convert the TCP to an exploration right.