Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe
Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe has downplayed Shell’s planned exit from South Africa, saying other companies will be waiting in the wings to take over its operations.
Mantashe was speaking to the Mail & Guardian during a door-to-door campaign in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, on Thursday.
His remarks come after it emerged that Shell will divest from its South African downstream business after more than 120 years in the country. This comes after weekend reports by the City Press and Sunday Times detailed a dispute between Shell and its black economic empowerment partner, Thebe Investment Corporation.
“Engen left, Vitol took that over. Caltex left and that is why Caltex garages are written Astron now. Shell is going to leave and I can tell you with my eyes closed, there will be a company or a consortium that will take over that business,” Mantashe said.
“They are following Engen which has left, Total, which is also leaving. It is now Shell and we must do a detailed analysis. Maybe it’s a geopolitical issue more than a climate change issue.”
Shell leaving South Africa is not cause for environmentalists to celebrate, Mantashe said.
“We cannot determine life out of fear. Shell wants to leave downstream, which means garages. They are not leaving upstream and middlestream, so that means they will still be around,” he said.
“We don’t know Shell. We know their garages. That is what they are leaving. It is bad that you leave your downstream sector that way because it is an important sector for motorists and South Africans.”
Mantashe added that his ministry is meeting Shell to get further detail of its falling out with Thebe.
“You can’t intervene in a private company. A private company must improve its own operations,” he said.