MEDIA STATEMENT

Attention: News Editors and Journalists 09 October 2026

For Immediate Release

CEF GROUP CHAIRPERSON CALLS FOR STRATEGIC INVESTMENT IN SOUTH AFRICA’S REFINING CAPACITY

Johannesburg, 9 October 2026 – The Chairperson of the Central Energy Fund (CEF) Group, Ms. Ayanda Noah has called for a national conversation on the future of South Africa’s refining sector, warning that increasing dependence on imported fuel poses a strategic risk to the country’s energy security, industrialisation ambitions and economic resilience.

Speaking at an industry engagement themed: State and Transformation of the Energy Industry, Noah emphasised that the country’s growing reliance on imported petroleum products should be viewed not only as an energy concern, but as a broader economic challenge requiring urgent intervention.

“South Africa should not aspire merely to be a consumer of energy. We should aspire to remain a producer, processor, owner and developer of strategic energy infrastructure,” said Noah. “Energy security is economic security, and refining capacity is industrial capacity.”

Noah noted that South Africa’s domestic refining capacity has declined significantly over the past decade, with imported fuels now accounting for approximately 61% of domestic fuel demand compared to 22% in 2019. She cautioned that increased dependence on imported products exposes the country to geopolitical instability, supply chain disruptions and exchange rate volatility.

According to Noah, maintaining strategic refining capacity must be viewed as part of a broader industrial development agenda, given the critical role the sector plays in supporting mining, electricity generation, manufacturing, transport, agriculture, logistics and the broader economy.

She highlighted international examples from fellow BRICS countries, including Brazil, India, China and Russia, where governments, state-owned enterprises, development finance institutions and private investors continue to work together to support strategic energy infrastructure as a cornerstone of national development.

Noah further called on South Africa’s development finance institutions, including the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), to play a greater role in evaluating strategic energy infrastructure as an enabler of industrialisation and economic growth.

“The investment discussion should not focus solely on the commercial return of an individual refinery. We must also consider the broader economic return generated through job creation, local manufacturing, engineering capability, skills development, SMME growth and enhanced energy security,” she said.

Noah pointed to the South African National Petroleum Company (SANPC) Refinery Development Programme as a significant opportunity to strengthen South Africa’s energy security while driving industrialisation. The proposed 400,000 barrel-per-day refinery project, which is estimated to require investment of approximately US$7.15 billion, has the potential to create around 12,500 construction jobs and 2,850 permanent operational jobs.

She also highlighted the strategic importance of revitalising PetroSA’s Mossel Bay operations, noting that successful investment in feedstock solutions and associated infrastructure could unlock broader industrial development opportunities in petrochemicals, manufacturing, logistics and gas-to-power projects.

Noah stressed that South Africa must carefully consider the long-term cost of failing to invest in domestic refining capacity.

“We spend considerable time debating the cost of investment, but we should also ask ourselves what it will cost South Africa if we do not invest. Strategic capacity takes years to build, but it can disappear in months. We cannot afford to wait for a crisis before acting,” she said.

She concluded by calling for a pragmatic, evidence-based discussion involving government, industry, labour, investors and development finance institutions to determine the energy infrastructure South Africa will require over the next three decades.

“This is not an ideological debate. It is a conversation about national capability, economic resilience and long-term growth. The question before us is whether we are prepared to invest collectively and strategically in the productive capacity that will secure South Africa’s future prosperity,” Noah concluded.

For more information, contact: Jacky Mashapu

Cell: 081 011 7528

Email: jackym@cefgroup.co.za