Transnet, a South African state-owned freight logisitcs group, plans to launch a tender for the construction of the first LNG import terminal in South Africa in the third quarter of 2020. The LNG project would be located at Richards Bay port and would start to import LNG as of 2024. LNG could be imported from Angola and Mozambique, where a large liquefaction plant project was recently approved. The regasification terminal at Richards Bay could be onshore or could be a Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU). It would supply gas to the ports of the region, including Coega, where a gas-fired power plant is under consideration. The project would require to re-purpose the existing gas pipelines between Durban and Johannesburg.
South Africa is seeking to diversify its energy sources away from coal. Gas supplies from national oil and gas company Sasol, which imports gas from Mozambique are expected to face constraints as of 2023, due to maturing fields in Temane and Pande in Mozambique.