The scramble for Africa’s gas

This December 2022 briefing by Global Energy Monitor examines the planned US$245 billion expansion of gas infrastructure in Africa. It highlights a significant imbalance where investments in LNG export terminals and pipelines for international markets—driven by Europe's short-term energy crisis following Russia's invasion of Ukraine—far outweigh investments in domestic power generation and renewable energy, creating a high risk of stranded assets.

• Planned investment in LNG export terminals is significantly higher than investment in gas plants for domestic power. Of the US$103 billion estimated capital expenditure for in-development LNG terminals, 92% is for export terminals. This expansion would increase the region's LNG export capacity by 111%, from 79.3 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), while providing little benefit to continental electrification.
• The planned gas pipeline buildout in Africa requires US$89 billion in investment, but the vast majority of these projects are only in the proposal stage. Only US$4 billion is attributed to projects under construction, while US$85 billion is attributed to proposed projects. Of the 23,932 km of pipelines in development, only 1,872 km are currently under construction.
• Investment in gas-fired power plants is lagging behind export infrastructure, with a total estimated requirement of US$62 billion. Only US$9.7 billion is for projects under construction, while US$52.3 billion is for proposed projects. Nigeria and South Africa have the highest estimated investment needs for gas plants at US$21.2 billion and US$16.3 billion, respectively.
• There is a stark contrast between the scale of gas export ambitions and the reality of domestic energy access in key countries. For example, Tanzania has announced a US$40 billion LNG export project despite only 40% of its population having electricity access. Similarly, Nigeria has 51% access and Mozambique has 31% access.
• Africa's current gas-fired power generation is concentrated in North Africa, with 109.2 GW of operating capacity. Egypt is the largest consumer with 51,608 MW in operating gas-fired plants. While 64.1 GW of additional capacity is in development, only 10.5 GW is currently under construction.
• The drive to expand gas infrastructure is largely influenced by Europe's need to replace Russian gas, creating a risk that these multi-billion dollar investments will become stranded assets once the energy crisis abates. This focus competes with the necessary investment in renewable energy to achieve universal clean energy access.

APA

Juta, C., Joly, J., & Langenbrunner, B. (2022). The scramble for Africa’s gas. Global Energy Monitor. https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-Scramble-for-Africas-Gas_11.pdf

Chicago

Juta, Christine, Julie Joly, and Baird Langenbrunner. The scramble for Africa’s gas. Global Energy Monitor, 2022. https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-Scramble-for-Africas-Gas_11.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Juta |first1=Christine |last2=Joly |first2=Julie |last3=Langenbrunner |first3=Baird |title=The scramble for Africa’s gas |publisher=Global Energy Monitor |date=December 2022 |url=https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-Scramble-for-Africas-Gas_11.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{juta2022scramble, author = {Juta, Christine and Joly, Julie and Langenbrunner, Baird}, title = {{The scramble for Africa’s gas}}, institution = {Global Energy Monitor}, year = {2022}, month = dec, url = {https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-Scramble-for-Africas-Gas_11.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }