At a glance

• South Africa has significant natural gas reserves, including offshore fields, shale gas reserves, and coal-bed methane. The country has also made recent gas discoveries, which have the potential to meet a significant portion of its energy needs.
• South Africa is a net importer of natural gas, primarily sourced from the Temane and Pande Gas fields in Mozambique. The imported gas is used by Sasol Gas in its chemical and gas-to-liquids facilities, as well as supplied to other gas traders, local distributors, and industrial customers.
• The regulation of the natural gas sector in South Africa is governed by the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) and the Gas Act. The government is currently working on the Upstream Petroleum Resources Development Bill (UPRDB) to separate the regulatory frameworks for mining and upstream petroleum activities, which aims to promote investment and growth in the sector.