TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Tuesday, Nov 05, 2024

Germany is keen to pursue gas projects with Senegal, says Scholz

Germany is keen to pursue gas projects with Senegal, says Scholz

Germany wants to intensively pursue gas and renewable energy projects with Senegal, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Sunday during his first trip to Africa, against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and its impact on energy and food prices.
Scholz kicked off the three-day tour in Senegal, which has billions of cubic meters of gas reserves and is expected to become a major gas producer in the region. Germany is seeking to reduce its heavy reliance on Russia for gas following the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine. It has initiated talks with the Senegalese authorities about gas extraction and liquefied natural gas, Scholz said.

"It is a matter worth pursuing intensively," he said at a news conference with Senegalese President Macky Sall, adding that progress in the talks was in the two countries common interest. mScholz said Germany was also interested in Senegalese renewable energy projects. He did not provide further details.

Sall said Senegal was ready to work towards supplying the European market with LNG. He forecast Senegal's LNG output reaching 2.5 million tons next year and 10 million tons by 2030. In terms of gas exploration, project financing and other questions, "all that is open, and we are keen to work with Germany in this context," Sall said.

Germany has invited both Senegal, which currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the African Union, and South Africa to attend the G7 summit it is hosting in June as guest countries.

Both countries abstained from voting on a United Nations resolution against Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a special military operation to demilitarize a neighbor it says threatened its security. Ukraine and its allies say the war is an unprovoked act of aggression.

Speaking as African Union chairman, Sall said many African countries did not want to take sides on the war, while condemning the invasion. "Very clearly, we want peace," he said, "we're working for a de-escalation, we're working for a ceasefire, for dialogue ... that is the African position."

Sall said he would visit Moscow and Kiev in the coming weeks. The conflict in Ukraine, a major grains and food supplier, has triggered supply disruptions that have pushed up food and energy prices in Africa.

"I expressed to Chancellor Scholz our serious concern about the impact of the war," Sall said, requesting international help to lessen the fallout for African countries.

Scholz will travel later on Sunday to Niger, from where he will fly to Johannesburg on Monday evening for the final leg of his tour.

During his visit to Senegal, Niger and South Africa, climate change, economic cooperation, the fight against pandemics and the strengthening of democracies in Africa are to be discussed.

Scholz's inaugural visit to Africa is designed to convey a bit of continuity in turbulent times. In February, Russia's invasion of Ukraine forced German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to cut short his trip to Senegal, and Scholz's May 22-25 visit is meant to pick up that thread.

Scholz's trip begins in Senegal, then goes to Niger and South Africa. The chancellor, who has been in office for almost six months now, will make his first stops in two countries that are often seen as making important contributions toward stability in West Africa.

Both Senegal and Niger border Mali, which saw a military coup in May 2021 and whose decisions since then have seen tensions arise between itself and its African neighbors and EU partners.

Neighboring Niger, which already hosts soldiers from a number of Western nations — including some of the French troops who were previously in Mali — has the potential to be a new base for these kinds of missions. Niger's government has sent positive signals so far.

Volker Treier, the head of foreign trade at the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce, told DW that Scholz's first visit to Africa is happening at just the right time. Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns in China have highlighted how Germany is too dependent on some countries, Treier said, especially for energy needs.

"We need to find ways to trade with many countries in many different ways and to conclude agreements on energy and also on security policy," Treier said.

Africa has a lot to offer Germany when it comes to diversifying energy sources — and not just in terms of fossil fuels such as liquid natural gas. Senegal has recently invested a lot into solar energy and could be a pioneer in this area.

Energy will also play a big role in the last stop on Scholz's tour. South Africa was heavily dependent on coal imports and would need to diversify its power sources and move toward more environmentally friendly fuels. Since 2008, the country has had problems keeping up with energy demand.

There is incredible scope for South Africa and countries like Germany to partner and work with each other ... to seek investment, expertise, knowledge, technical know-how.

Another recent development in Africa will also be important for future cooperation, Treier said. The African Continental Free Trade Area agreement came into force at the beginning of 2021.

Treier said the agreement was similar to the European Single Market and had great potential. It would provide a better basis for German companies to invest in Africa and to create jobs, he said. It would also allow African-made products to play a greater role in international supply chains and move the continent away from simply providing raw materials.
Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
0:00
0:00
Close
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Italian Court's Controversial Ruling on Sexual Harassment Ignites Uproar
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
BBC Personalities Rebuke Accusations Amidst Scandal Involving Teen Exploitation
A Swift Disappointment: Why Is Taylor Swift Bypassing Canada on Her Global Tour?
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
Unilever Plummets in a $2.5 Billion Free Fall, to begin with: A Reckoning for Misuse of Corporate Power Against National Interest
Beyond the Blame Game: The Need for Nuanced Perspectives on America's Complex Reality
Twitter Targets Meta: A Tangle of Trade Secrets and Copycat Culture
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
×