South Africa Revives Plan to Take Free Stake in Energy Projects
- Draft law proposes state get 20% of new oil, gas ventures
- Companies have delayed drilling due to policy uncertainty
Photographer: Trevor Snapp/Bloomberg
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South Africa’s government is drafting a new law that aims at securing it a free stake in all new oil and gas ventures, revising the terms of a proposal shelved four years ago.
Under the legislation, which the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy outlined to lawmakers in Cape Town on Friday, the state would secure 10% ownership of energy projects at the exploration phase and the rights to 10% of their production at no cost. The law, which is still being refined, will be submitted to parliament in the final quarter of this year, said Ntokozo Ngcwabe, a deputy director-general in the department.