Can sub-Saharan Africa help fill the EU’s gas gap?

Africa has potential to expand LNG exports, but its additional contribution is likely to remain limited

The EU is attempting to wean itself off imports of Russian gas, which accounted for almost 40pc of the bloc’s supplies last year, a volume equivalent to almost 115mn t of LNG. Large volumes are expected to come from Qatar and the US over the next five years, and the bloc will look primarily to these two countries to plug the supply gap. But it will also want to further diversify its sources. Sub-Saharan Africa is a proven supplier of LNG to Europe and another option to reduce EU dependence on Russian gas. The region already benefits from the heavy involvement of the European majors as well as its relative proximity to Europe, keeping shipping costs down. Europe imported 75mn t of LNG in 2021