The issues surrounding the energy sector are under debate all over the world. The major purpose of all of them is to find ways for a sustainable exploitation, and above all, with less environmental impact.
Mozambique is no stranger to this, more so because it is a country extremely rich in fossil and renewable resources.
Thus, MZNews interviewed Jocelyne Machevo - Consultant in Energy and Mineral Resources, President of the AMEPRH's Energy Section, to find out what guidelines our country should adopt, and, in a last line, the role of women in the sector.
The proposals start from a realistic basis that fossil resources like gas will one day run out, so their exploitation should not be the end, but the beginning of making the best use of the abundant renewable energy sources in the country.
Much is said about the energy potential of Mozambique, but recently there is more talk about the natural resources of the center and north, and it seems that (i) it is just that, and (ii) renewable energy has been forgotten. In fact, what is the energy matrix of Mozambique and what is its potential?
Mozambique is a country abundant in energy resources, from fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas to renewable resources such as solar, hydro and wind energy, among others. With regard to the natural gas that has been talked about so much in recent years, it is important to note that there is a gas reserve in the south of the country, in Pande and Temane (in Inhambane province), which has been in production since 2004. But there are also the natural gas reserves recently discovered in the Rovuma Basin, in Cabo Delgado Province, still in the development phase. These discoveries are considered world class, having placed Mozambique among the most prominent countries in terms of potential for gas production and export. On the other hand, we are also privileged to have an abundance of sources for solar energy throughout the territory, hydroelectric, wind, as well as biomass. In other words, our country is extremely rich in both fossil fuels and renewable energies.
Despite this wealth, at this moment a large part of these energy resources are still not being exploited to their full potential, a fact that is reflected in our national statistics on access to energy, where the majority of the population still does not have access to energy. And when we talk about access to energy it does not mean simply having your house connected to the national electricity grid, but we are talking about access to energy that is reliable, sustainable, modern, and affordable for all Mozambicans, and also competitive on the side of investors.
Personally, I see a very big potential in our natural gas reserves. It's true, we live in a critical moment globally regarding climate change and there is this very big international pressure to make the Energy Transition to cleaner energy sources. However, it is important that we are realistic, there are issues about cleaner sources that must be considered. For example, technology issues. Many technologies are still under development/maturing, for example batteries for storing solar energy; or else issues related to the costs of this transition and its affordability, as there are countries that are making the transition from low carbon to higher carbon sources simply because of the associated high costs that result in high prices for the population.
The fact is, the transition will happen sooner or later, it's a matter of survival. However, each government must be realistic enough to adopt the best strategy that fits the reality of their country, and not simply import strategies from other regions. As a country, we need to look at the existing resources and develop a strategy that meets our current and future needs. Mozambique still has basic problems, in order to achieve the climate goals/targets it is important that we first achieve universal access to energy, and our energy transition strategy must reflect this.
Therefore, I believe that we must leverage the use of natural gas which is abundant and of exceptional quality (relatively cleaner) for energy generation, so that we can guarantee the industrialization of certain regions and also guarantee access to energy for more citizens.
However, we must also boost the use of renewable energy resources, take advantage of the immense potential for solar, water, and wind power.
What investments would be most flexible to start using other energy sources as an alternative to conventional energy from the national grid?
In fact, it is important to accept that at this point in time, aiming to have every Mozambican household connected to the national grid is an illusion. Thus, it becomes important to choose the options that are most flexible and accessible in terms of cost. Solar energy, besides being the most abundant renewable resource, is also very important to guarantee access to energy, especially in rural areas, due to its great flexibility. This is definitely a bet for these regions, where mini-kits of solar panels can be provided to families and micro and mini-grids of solar energy can also be installed to ensure that the rural population has access to energy, and it is important to recognize that the government is already working in this direction and there are several initiatives in this area.
Another investment alternative that is little talked about is biomass energy, specifically using the bagasse (waste product) from sugar factories. Instead of simply being burned every year, it can be used as a raw material for energy production. As a country we can consider investing in these solutions and leave the traditional route of development of an energy matrix.
What should Mozambique bet in this period of the natural gas boom considering the potential and infinity of renewable energies?
Natural fossil fuels will definitely run out at some point, they are finite reserves. There are countries around the world that are already reaching the limit of their reserves, their reserves are already completely exploited, and this will naturally happen with Mozambique. From the moment production starts, the life cycle of the reserve can be around 50 years, depending on the annual production of the reserve. Therefore, we must start thinking and acting immediately on the strategy beyond 20 years. Let's use gas as a bridge to develop our country and not as a destination. Right now the long-term future is definitely clean sources.
On the other hand, knowing that gas will run out why don't we start investing in renewables directly? This could be a logical question. But the big problem right now is that the renewable energy technology is not yet so developed.
Mozambique is still a developing country, and one of the points to leverage this socioeconomic development is industrialization. Unfortunately, industrialization cannot yet be fostered from renewable energy due to its technical and technological limitations. Therefore, it is important to ensure the inclusion of fossil fuels that provide the base energy (base load) to leverage this industrial development. Hence, it is important to keep gas in the energy matrix, while at the global level technologies are being developed that allow the use of renewable energies to enhance and enable industrialization in the different developing countries.
Again, the energy transition issue has to happen, it's a reality, and it's where we're headed. It's also a matter of survival. So we hope that in the medium to long term we will have an energy sector in which the percentage of renewable energy is above 50% so that we can achieve the climate targets that are being imposed worldwide.
Increasingly, the energy industry is facing new challenges, mainly due to its demand and demand for quality that is less harmful to the environment. You recently represented Mozambique at the GasTech 2021 Conference, in the United Arab Emirates. What were the main conclusions of the sessions you attended?
It was the first in-person Conference after two years. I attended the 2019 Conference in Houston, and last year it was virtual, and of course when it is like that there is no such possibility to have the same level of panelists that were at this year's conference. On the first day, in the opening session, we had several panelists with high decision-making power, including the Minister of the United Arab Emirates and the Secretary General of OPEC (OPEC, in English) - who was representing Africa - and he emphasized the fact that the issue of energy transition is being misinterpreted and conveyed, something that I identified with a lot and had already commented on with colleagues in the area.
What happens is that we have "an agenda" and there are countries that are saying, "we have the issue of climate change, lobal warming, we should cut greenhouse gas emissions immediately and move to cleaner sources." It is true that we have all these issues, but it is more important to look at the reality of the countries. Many of these countries that are pushing this "agenda" are already developed countries. If we look at the countries in Africa, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, a large part of the population does not have access to energy. An example: In Mozambique we have cars running on fossil fuels (diesel and gasoline) and we also have cars running on gas, although they are few. But what the energy transition is saying is: "the young Mozambican who has just started working, who is saving money to be able to buy an affordable gasoline or diesel car should wait until on the one hand electric cars are available for the Mozambican market and the country has the minimum infrastructure to accommodate these vehicles, and on the other hand they will have to spend more time saving money because electric cars right now are still relatively high cost". This is a hypothetical example, but essentially this is what we would be doing, we would be depriving our population for longer to have access to better quality of life and basic services. So it's important to put this energy transition into context.
Something that was very well explained by the Secretary General was that the continent's main problem at the moment is access to energy, regardless of the source, because the benefits of access to energy are tangible in a country's economy. So you can't condition access to energy with the use of renewable sources only, which don't even have the technologies fully matured to be applied in the context of developing countries. Let's use what is available in terms of energy resources.
How much could the energy transition cost today looking at the technologies applied to harness energy resources?
One of the big problems with access to energy is price. Renewable energy is highly technological. Our energy (from the national grid) is already subsidized, and to talk about renewable energy in Mozambique means that the population must have an even greater purchasing power to afford it. This transition cost must be properly debated and clarified. Governments, the public and private sector, and international companies must look at their strategies; companies must review their business models, their portfolio, and see a way to adjust to this new energy transition and add value above all else. And to do this we need to have some kind of diversity in terms of professionals.
What examples can you give us of successful energy transformation?
Different from our scenario is Portugal, which was completely dependent on imports as it had no fossil fuel reserves, and today, it is at a great level in terms of energy matrix, far above what they were prospecting, as shared by the Secretary of State for Energy during the GasTech 2021 Confrontation. The country hopes that by 2040 it will have its energy matrix completely based on renewable energy. But beware, that context is completely different from ours.
How can Mozambique make up for the labor deficit while allowing more inclusive exposure to that industry?
When the quantities of gas were discovered between 2010-11 by the large companies, they said that Mozambique did not have human resources capable of integrating the industry, and this was a fact. There was no way they could arrive here and expect to find a workforce prepared to integrate an industry that basically did not exist in Mozambique. Unfortunately, the oil and gas industry is a very strict and rigid industry, and it encompasses aspects that we cannot learn overnight, nor can we let go. The important thing at this moment that has been happening is that the Government and the Concessionaires are trying to benefit from the projects that they have in other countries to guarantee at least the minimum exposure to Mozambicans. But there are aspects that we as a country can try to implement and also learn from other countries. Through partnerships, instead of having a small number of Mozambicans going abroad and having this exposure, we can try to replicate and use technology to recreate the environment of the operations in Mozambique in Centers of Excellence and have a larger number of Mozambicans benefit from that exposure. It is something that is being done in other countries, and I believe that there is some effort from the Government trying to implement something similar.
In these terms, what is the place of women in this process of energetic transformation?
Women, unfortunately are the gender most affected by energy poverty and this is real anywhere in the world. She understands exactly what the challenges and implications of energy poverty are for her community. Therefore, nothing could be fairer than for her to be at the debate table to propose solutions.
Today we are better represented than we were a few years ago. When I entered the sector there were already women in the energy industry, they were few, but they were already there and they held leadership positions: at the Ministry level, FUNAE (Energy Fund), ENH (National Hydrocarbon Company), INP (National Petroleum Institute), just to mention a few institutions. And I believe that the fact that we had those few women was important, because, it showed us that it was possible to have women in this industry and be successful. Hence the importance of exposure and representation. But there is still a lot to be done of course, because we still haven't reached the so desired gender equity. But this is a structural problem that must be solved from the very beginning, at the school base!