- President Macky Sall demonstrating leadership capabilities
- Gas as a key driver of Senegal’s economic stability and energy security
- Yakaar-Teranga to drive huge investment in the power sector
Energy major, bp and its partner in the Cayar Offshore Profond block Kosmos Energy are making significant progress on the Yakaar-Teranga gas project, located offshore Senegal, local news agency sources said.
Considered as a follow-up to the bp-operated Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) project reportedly said to be set to witness first production this year, to fast-track the development of the Yakaar-Teranga project, the project is also hoped to open up new opportunities for power generation and industry growth.
bp is also targeting, according to a press statement, its second large-scale natural gas development offshore Senegal. A feasibility study for the initiative, according to an email to Energy Window International, was underway, yet with expectation that project partners would soon be announcing the FID for the gas development within the year. First production is slated for 2024. Yakaar-Teranga gas development is expected to play a significant role as Senegal seeks to strengthen the foundation of its hydrocarbon industry while ushering in a new era of economic prosperity on the back of gas-to-power. It will also position the West African country as a global investment destination of choice, with players across the entire gas and power value chains rallying to grab a share of the country’s burgeoning industry and associated sectors. With President Macky Sall placing gas as a key driver of economic stability and energy security, Yakaar-Teranga will unlock new investment opportunities, specifically across the power sector, the sources said.
The project is expected to be developed in two phases, with gas produced set to supply state utility Senelec’s power plants, and thereafter be distributed regionally. While the MSGBC region represents one of the most electrified continentally, emerging gas-to-power opportunities made possible through Yakaar-Teranga would enable Senegal, and its regional counterparts, meet national targets of universal access to electricity, thereby improving livelihoods while supplying clean electricity to emerging sectors across the economy. Notably, with the region’s mining, agriculture and manufacturing industries rapidly expanding, gas-to-power promises new opportunities for growth.
According to the World Bank, Senegal’s GDP is expected to record an impressive 8% growth in 2023 and 10.2% growth in 2024, all due to natural gas projects to the likes of Yakaar-Teranga. With up to 20 trillion cubic feet of natural gas recoverable for exploitation through 2053, Yakaar-Teranga represents a sustainable energy project that will drive Senegal’s economic growth for years to come.
It is also disclosed that Senegal was already working towards expanding the hydrocarbon E&P space even further as it expects its first oil and gas production in the Sangomar Oilfield, besides the GTA development this year, and Yakaar-Teranga in 2024.
The country is therefore inviting a slate of new players to engage in what stakeholders had referred to as “one of the world’s most promising E&P plays.” Senegal’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energies is said to be planning, at the moment, a potentially larger and second licensing bid round, expected to see stronger players and wider interests, even as the region’s E&P landscape becomes ever-more attractive in the current high-demand global context. The country had its first major licensing round in 2020, with 12 blocks on offer.
