• By: News
  • 0 comment

PetroSA is seeking partners to assist in the refurbishment and restart of its gas-to-liquids (GTL) refinery in Mossel Bay, with an aim to have full production back up and running as soon as possible.

Having operated for almost 30 years, production of petrol, diesel, and other value-added products from the refinery was suspended in 2020 due to offshore gas and condensate feedstocks running dry.

PetroSA now seeks to resume full production “in the earliest possible time at least cost”. This appears to be in pursuit of an expedient solution ahead of a “long-term feedstock solution that is under development which is expected to supply feedstock to enable full production capacity as of 2027/2028.”

The state-owned entity hopes secure new gas from Brulpadda and Luiperd – two significant offshore discoveries made by TotalEnergies in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

But as these projects are anticipated to come online after 2026, PetroSA has called for bidders to offer quicker feedstock supply solutions as part of its request for proposals.

The move to accelerate the reinstatement of PetroSA’s production from its 36 000 barrel-per-day refinery comes as South African fuel imports have risen to record levels following the closure of several refineries.

There is also an imperative to stabilise the loss-making PetroSA before it is incorporated into a new National Petroleum Company which will see it merged with iGas and the Strategic Fuel Fund.

PetroSA says preference will be given to “state-owned or state-supported oil and gas entities from oil and gas-producing nations with access to feedstock and their own financial resources to undertake the project”.

The parastatal said it wants a turnkey solution from design to commissioning, including funding and feedstock security; “however, other combinations which are fit for purpose are encouraged and will also be considered by PetroSA”, it said.

In terms of timelines, projects which can be delivered by 2023 will be scored well, while projects that can only be delivered after 2025 will receive no points.

Preference will be given to entities with proven and formalised relationships with oil and gas-producing nations, as well as those developers who are in a position to finance the development at risk up to Financial Investment Decision (FID) and will only recover development costs at financial close.

The deadline for submissions is 20 February.