SA should accelerate oil and gas exploration, says Jeff Radebe
‘An economy of our size cannot continue to operate without significant investment in oil and gas’
SA should accelerate efforts in oil and gas exploration, which could go a long way in curbing the rampant fuel price hikes, energy minister Jeff Radebe said. SA has been hit by record-high fuel prices due to a rising oil price and weak rand. This has prompted the government to explore ways to curb the increases, including the possible introduction of measures to boost competition in setting the price of 93-octane petrol. “As indicated previously, there are no short term fixes to fuel prices, especially because the causes are mainly geopolitical and [due to] sentiments on emerging markets,” Radebe said in a reply to a question from the DA in parliament. “In the medium to long term, taking into account the current reality of unproven reserves in our country, we need to look at more prolific countries and invest in blocks producing crude oil, particularly on the African continent. ‘‘This will require financial resources, as exploration is quite a costly but necessary exercise. I have b...
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