South African shale gas mining advances in controversy

Driven in the semi-arid steppe on the southern edge of the Karoo Basin in South Africa, you can see the "Prince Albert" written in white lime on the hillside. The town of Prince Albert is located at the foot of the mountains, and the neat white buildings and the centuries-old trees on the street reflect each other and look clean and tidy.

In recent times, shale gas mining in South Africa has attracted a lot of controversy. It is understood that the South African government has allocated 35 exploration blocks in the Karoo Basin and has received more than 90 exploration applications from international oil and gas companies. Among them, the Dutch Shell Oil Company obtained an exploration license in 2011 and was the first international company to enter the shale gas field in South Africa. Australia's Bandu Oil and Gas Company, South Africa's Sasol Corporation, and the US Chesapeake Energy Company have successively signed technical cooperation contracts with the South African government. The Chevron Company of the United States and the Falcon Oil and Gas Company of the United Kingdom also signed a five-year exploration permit with the South African government. At present, the Karoo Basin has become the largest shale gas development area in Africa, and the shale gas project near Prince Albert Town is also among them.

Although the development of shale gas has brought economic benefits, it has also caused conflicts between oil and gas companies and local environmentalists and farmers from time to time. Many shale gas projects are often interrupted and progress is very slow. Those who support shale gas development believe that this will help promote employment and economic development in South Africa. But environmentalists and local farmers continue to protest and ask the government to reconsider the development plan for the Karoo Basin. To this end, in 2011, the South African government had to suspend the previously issued shale gas exploration permit. It was not until September 2012 that the South African government lifted the ban and stated that measures would be taken to prevent possible contamination of groundwater quality. Despite this, the conflict between oil and gas companies and environmentalists and farmers has not died.

Prince Albert has a history of 252 years. Most of the knitwear shops in the town sell handmade mohair fabrics. Vasa, the manager of the "African Art" store, told reporters prudently that shale gas mining is destroying the local environment, and there are not many such mohair fabrics in the future.

In the town's community newspaper "Prince Albert Friendship", even on the street trash can, reporters can see articles or propaganda slogans against shale gas mining. Su, a flower shop owner, told this reporter that people in the town are worried that the exploitation of shale gas will affect the fragile environment, polluted water sources and the drinking water of people and livestock. They are against the exploitation of shale gas.

According to US Energy Information Administration estimates, South Africa's recoverable shale gas resources may reach approximately 390 trillion cubic feet (1 cubic foot or 0.028 cubic meters). It is understood that these shale gas reserves are mainly concentrated in the Karoo Basin region of South Africa, the Prince Albert area has 96 trillion cubic feet, the Baishan block has about 211 trillion cubic feet, and the Klingham block has about 82. Trillion cubic feet. In order to solve the bottleneck of power shortage in South Africa, by 2020, the South African government is expected to increase the proportion of natural gas in energy consumption to 10%, of which shale gas is the main force.

Kua Ku, a scholar at the School of Business at Kingsoft University in South Africa, told this reporter that in addition to the protests, shale gas development requires a lot of investment and the introduction of relevant regulations and regulatory measures. Earlier this year, the South African government proposed to amend mineral resources legislation to limit oil and gas development investment, which affected the enthusiasm of foreign investment in South Africa's shale gas. He believes that despite the slow start, the development of shale gas in South Africa will not stop.

Tana, a retired teacher in Prince Albert, also told this reporter that in fact, people’s protests are not to obstruct mining, but because of the lack of relevant assessment reports, people’s threats to shale gas mining are not in the heart. At the end, the government needs to study hard to eliminate people's doubts. Currently, the Eastern Cape Province Ministry of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism and Nelson Mandela City University have announced that they will spend three years evaluating the shale gas resources and their impacts in the Karoo region, which are the shale gas parties in the Karoo region. Perhaps it is good news.

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