Natural gas and helium provider Renergen’s Virginia gas project’s Phase 2 is now a strategic integrated project (SIP) under the Infrastructure Development Act (IDA) and its amendments were Gazetted by Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia De Lille earlier this month.

Being a SIP will include benefits such as sped up processes relating to any application for approval, authorisation, licence, permission or exemption, and that processes relating to any consultation and participation required by the relevant laws must, as far as possible, run concurrently.

Timeframes for authorisations, licences, permissions and/or exemptions are reduced significantly towards a targeted 57-day timeframe for approval outside of timeframes stipulated for public consultation processes.

"This is a really big step in the right direction for the company. Being declared a SIP has many benefits, as it means the project now falls into the country's strategic planning and significantly reduces approval times for all the licences and regulatory approvals required for the development of Phase 2, including an environmental- and social-impact assessment and a water-use licence, to name a few,” Renergen CEO Stefano Marani said on December 14.

“Being declared a SIP is hardly an easy feat and we are excited to see the Virginia gas project integrate with the national planning of significant domestic energy security at this time. We are grateful to the South African government for the excellent collaboration to achieve this milestone," he added.

The Virginia gas project now falls under the Oil and Gas National Programme and forms part of the Energy Strategic Integrated Project No 20f.

This project, together with any of its associated infrastructure such as, but not limited to, access roads, pipelines, substations and overhead powerlines, are regarded as SIPs to be expedited in terms of Schedule 2 (Section 17(2)) of the IDA.

Phase 2 of the Virginia gas project will produce 34 000 GJ of liquefied natural gas and up to 5 t/d of helium, which will be prioritised for implementation and can follow an expedited path to delivery with reduced time frames for regulatory processes.

While there were minimal delays and impacts concerning regulatory approvals for the project’s Phase 1 plant, this status will accelerate the approvals for its Phase 2 project, with the period for the relevant authority to consider, assess and make final regulatory decisions.

The IDA defines a SIP to mean a public infrastructure project or group of projects that are of significant economic importance, that contribute substantially to the national strategy relating to infrastructure, or of a high enough value to be determined strategic to the country.