Gas can boost the national economy and start the country on the path to zero emissions

CSIR research group leader for transport infrastructure management, Khangwelo Muronga, says his team helps enable South Africa to migrate to swifter, more efficient and smarter mobility.

Dr Phindile Masangane, the CEO of Petroleum Agency South Africa, notes that recent gas discoveries could support the country’s economic recovery and its transition to a clean energy future.

modes of transportation, especially the minibus taxis that transport about 80% of the public.

1% to global emissions. This is by no measure insignificant, and as a responsible global citizen SA must take steps to reduce its carbon footprint.

Transport infrastructure

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change was established in 1992 to coordinate the global response to mitigate the threat of climate change, and specifically to get countries to commit to policies and plans that will ensure that the average global temperature rise is kept less than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

SToday the biggest threat to humanity is climate change, and the biggest threat to SA’s social stability is the high unemployment rate.

As the global economy recovers from the devastating effects of Covid-19, demand for oil and gas has gone up significantly. If there was ever a need for proof that oil and gas still drive the global economy, recent statistics demonstrate the trend.

mart transportation requires the integration of modern technologies into transportation infrastructures. These include cloud computing, wireless communication, location-based services, computer vision, and more. In Gauteng, the CSIR has been collaborating with the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport to address road maintenance issues. The organisation has also developed a system that allows the general public to report potholes and traffic lights, improving overall road conditions and easy of mobility.

The world’s developed economies industrialised on the back of oil and gas production and use. Now, just as Africa is on the cusp of being a significant gas producer and is making plans to use such gas for power generation, industrialisation and economic growth, the negative effects of greenhouse gas emissions on the environment have become undeniable.

Almost everyone uses roads and bridges on a regular basis, making them the most significant transportation medium in emerging nations like South Africa. Roads are crucial for boosting economic development and raising people’s standards of living. Roads provide access for people to marketplaces, workplaces, hospitals, clinics, educational facilities, sports venues, and holiday destinations. The CSIR has a sound trackrecord in providing smart-mobility solutions to assist with road infrastructure management. Among thes e solutions are:

• The maintenance-reporting solution

• The Struman bridge and structures solution

The International Energy Agency (IEA) proposes that to achieve this goal the world’s energy sector must reach net zero emissions by 2050. In its global energy net zero 2050 pathway the IEA acknowledges that there is no single pathway to this goal, as developed and developing countries face different socioeconomic challenges and have contributed disproportionately to greenhouse gas emissions to date.

• The traffic control centre management systems

What a number of environmental interest groups seem to be ignoring in the IEA “Net Zero by 2050” report is the acknowledgment that there will be a differentiated approach to a clean energy future, taking into consideration the cost of the new clean energy technologies and the economic consequences of transitioning for each country. The IEA emphasises that each country must develop its own pathway to a net zero emission future.

The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport’s Road maintenance reporting system was created at the request of the MEC for Roads, Transport and Infrastructure, the Honourable Jacob Mamabolo. The CSIR created a solution for reporting on normal road maintenance and construction that enables the maintenance teams to provide real-time updates on their daily activity, this included the creation of the PotholeFixGP application.

The urgency for action to mitigate the risk of climate change is no longer debatable. Between 1990 and 2018 the top five emitters have produced more than 50% of greenhouse gas emissions. During the same period SA contributed

Smart mobility encompasses various interconnected technological components and transportation infrastructure. This includes gasoline and electric vehicles, non-motorised mobility options such as car-sharing and ride-sharing programmes, and on-demand ridesharing services. It also includes other forms of transportation like bicycles, scooters, autonomous vehicles, and trains. The concept of smart mobility extends to designing infrastructure with dedicated lanes for specific

South Africa’s economy has been predominantly powered by coal, which is also a significant contributor to the country’s economy in terms of GDP as well as employment.

PotholeFixGP

In addition to coal, SA imports oil, gas and petroleum products for its energy needs as the upstream petroleum industry is still at a nascent stage. The two recent world-class offshore gas

The CSIR created the PotholeFixGP application, which can be downloaded from the appropriate mobile app stores to supplement this solution. It was designed to function on Apple and Android smartphones. The approach makes it possible for the general public to report on traffic lights and potholes on the road system. After reviewing the complaints from the public, the appropriate maintenance teams will then attend to the reported issues and rectify any anomalies either as filling of any reported potholes or traffic lights malfunction.

Smart Mobility Solutions System – Struman

The CSIR created the structure management discoveries in the Outeniqua basin are the biggest

Resources Development Bill] will assist the Agency in expediting exploration through close management of acreage allocation and work programmes. These positive factors create a conducive environment for PASA to pursue its mandate of attracting investment into the upstream petroleum industry.

The development of these discoveries has the potential to replace more than 2 300MW of dieselfired electricity generation, thereby reducing the carbon emissions by more than 50% while eliminating sulphur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions. Gas is therefore an obvious bridge to a lower carbon future.

The Petroleum Agency SA awaits the licensee of these gas discoveries submitting its production right and environmental authorisation applications when the exploration right expires, or earlier. The agency expects the licensee to use world-class technologies and standards to minimise the effects of the gas and gas condensate production on the environment, while maximising the in-country benefit or local content from this development to

These discoveries could indeed support both the country’s economic recovery and its transition

Onshore exploration opportunities are represented by unconventional resources such as shale gas in the south-central Karoo, coalbed methane in the coalfields of the east and northern sectors of the country and biogenic gas in the Virginia and Evander regions. However, geological analysis is showing that there may well be significant potential for

South Africa has a history of political stability and the new UPRD bill [Upstream Petroleum system, namely Struman and/or Bridge Management system as a tool to help authorities analyse the information gathered during the inspections of road infrastructure. A certified structures inspector who visits the places of interest can conduct the inspections physically, or it can be done by sending a drone to the locations to record video and take pictures of the structure. The skilled inspector can utilise these subsequently to examining the state of the structures and then advising on remedial actions. The method allows government agencies to cut expenditures on time-consuming and specialised services and also allows for prioritisation of structures that need immediate attention and those that require routine maintenance. ■

The draft bill provides greater policy certainty and a stable environment for investment in the South African oil and gas sector. It provides security of tenure by combining the rights for the exploration, development and production phase under one permit.

As far as the issuing of exploration rights over the last 18 months is concerned, a total of 21 exploration rights for both onshore and offshore were issued during this period, including renewals and new exploration rights.

As of December 2020, there is no longer a

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