Name of the Project
Virginia gas project.

Location
The project spans 187 000 ha of gasfields across Welkom, Virginia and Theunissen, in the Free State, South Africa.

Project Owner/s
Tetra4, a subsidiary of Renergen.

Project Description
The project entails the construction of a 52 km gas-gathering pipeline and cryogenic liquefaction processing facilities.

The aim is to produce all South Africa’s helium requirements and potentially export the balance of production, as well as produce the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) locally available for commercial consumption.

Based on Renergen’s five-year production mark, it is feasible that the company can produce between 1 000 kg/d and 1 500 kg/d of helium, which could increase to about 5 000 kg/d, should it have the option of tapping into the contingent reserves.

Additionally, Renergen will produce, concurrently, up to 10 000 GJ/d of LNG upon reaching full production. This amount of energy is equivalent to 277 000 ℓ/d of diesel.

Should production be maintained, the production right has a remaining life span of about 23 years.

Potential Job Creation
Despite the project’s size relative to traditional mining operations, it will create an estimated 360 temporary jobs during development and construction, and an estimated 82 permanent jobs once all the clusters have been developed.

Capital Expenditure
The total projected capital expenditure to roll out the first phase of production is estimated at R500-million, which includes the cryogenic liquefiers.

Planned Start /End Date
Construction is still expected to start in the second half of 2019. The project is expected to reach commercial production by 2021.

Latest Developments
Renergen has reached its final milestone before construction starts on its flagship Virginia gas project.

The company has awarded equipment supplier Western Shell Cryogenic Equipment a contract to supply the technology and equipment for the plant, alongside the project’s engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contractor EPCM Bonisana.

EPCM Bonisana will install the pipeline and manage the interface between the two installations.

The plant is expected to be operational within the first half of 2021 and to produce up to 2 700 GJ/d of LNG and 350 kg/d of liquid helium.

This will make the plant the first commercial LNG facility in the country.

The plant will also be modularised and constructed in sizes of standard shipping containers for ease of transport and installation on site.

The design uses a mixed refrigeration cycle for the liquefaction process of the natural gas, which means energy consumption is very low, compared with other plants at this small scale, Renergen has said.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
MHA Petroleum (helium reserve independent expert report) and VGI (owner’s engineer with regard to the engineering and procurement phase of the project).

Gas gathering work: EPCM Bonisana, a subsidiary of EPCM Holdings (EPC contractor).

Western Shell Cryogenic Equipment (contract to supply the technology and equipment for the plant).

On Budget and on Time?
Too early to state.

Contact Details for Project Information
Renergen, tel +27 10 045 6000, email info@renergen.co.za or investorrelations@renergen.co.za.