2017-07-17
A baseline economic assessment of the Western Cape Maritime Industry, requested by the Western Cape Government, has found that the rig repair, ship repair and vessel fabrication, key components of the Oil & Gas sector, has sustained 7120 direct jobs, and 6120 indirect jobs in the province as of 2015.
In total, the sector added R1.5 billion to the provincial economy in 2015.
At the heart of this success is Saldanha Bay on the province’s west coast. Being just 12 sailing days from Angola, it provides vessels a 16 days travel time compared to other competitors such as Las Palmas. This is estimated to save a rig operator as much as $3.5 million.
The Port of Saldanha as a result is currently servicing 82% of the market in South Africa, with the Port of Cape Town some 18%.
“We are working hard to position the Western Cape as an easy-to-do business and investment destination. In order to achieve this we are addressing key issues around our ports infrastructure and operations, as well as working closely with customs officials to ensure that we can provide an internationally-recognised Oil & Gas services hub” said MEC for Economic Opportunities, Alan Winde.
“Wesgro is looking forward to our outward mission to Malaysia and Singapore next month to promote the Oil & Gas and manufacturing sector. This latest report demonstrates the benefit of the sector to creating jobs and growing the provincial economy, and we will continue to do all we can to ensure even more investment is landed this year” said Yaw Peprah, Chief Business Officer, Wesgro.
“There are a number of positive signs that the Oil & Gas and Maritime industry globally as well as on the African continent has reached a turning point. While we still foresee a lower than expected oil price for the next few years, many companies have restructured and re-looking at projects. A recent report by Wood Mackenzie reported that more than 15 major upstream projects have reached FID stage in 2017 to date, one of which is the Coral FLNG project by ENI in Mozambique” said Laura Peinke, Executive: Business Development and Saldanha Bay Special Development Zone.
“We already have a number of specialist companies that exist in the Oil & Gas and Maritime market who will be able to leverage their expertise and accreditations across the energy sector – we see these companies as sustainable industry players who are capable of meeting disruptive technologies head-on and can compete globally.”
“At present, we are meeting with at least two international investors on a monthly basis who have a long-term view on the opportunities in the Oil & Gas sector in South Africa, and particularly as a spring-board for other opportunities on the African continent. We also have over 260 full members, many of whom are internationally accredited to service the industry with locally established facilities and skilled employees” added Niall Kramer, Chief Executive Director of the South African Oil and Gas Alliance.
“Between the collaborative efforts of the Western Cape Government, Wesgro, SAOGA and the Saldanha Bay IDZ, we are hosting over four inward delegations focused on the Oil & Gas and Maritime value chain on a quarterly basis. Most recently, a French delegation of maritime companies met with local companies to explore partnership opportunities and areas of growth in projects such as port infrastructure and specialist fabrication” concluded Winde.