AVZ Discussion 2022
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Frank
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DRC Mining Community Prepares for a Big Bash in Lubumbashi in June as DRC Mining Week Returns
It’s official, DRC Mining Week is back in Lubumbashi from 1–3 June, and to say that the industry is excited about its homecoming is an understatement.
This long-running, award-winning and flagship expo and conference returns to the heart of the Copperbelt and the bustling mining hub of the DRC to celebrate the region’s unlimited resilience, successes and opportunities.
“The DRC Mining Week team is ready to put the ‘bash’ back into Lubumbashi!”
Jokes event director Natalie Courtois, representative of the zest, energy and fun the organisers have become known for over the last 17 years of the event’s existence.
“We cannot wait to open our doors again and welcome all our clients and partners back to the Karavia Hotel, and we know that everyone has really missed having the event live and onsite during the last two years” says Courtois.
*The event boasts longstanding and loyal support from many sector leaders, including ERG Africa, FBN Bank and Glencore, who are diamond sponsors, while Equity BCDC, Orange and Standard Bank are platinum plus sponsors.
Other big names in industry that have partnered with DRC Mining Week in June include Ivanhoe Mines, the Cobalt Institute, USAID and Global Communities.
The largest expo and conference in the Copperbelt dedicated to the mining and industrial sector, DRC Mining Week will again gather some 600 mining executives from 80 mining houses and operators, 4000+ attendees, of which 70% will be international, more than 80 expert speakers, and the in- and outdoor exhibition will expect four country pavilions.
Anyone working in or for the mining and exploration sector, energy, professional equipment, machinery, transport and logistics, safety and security, construction, consulting and insurance should be in Lubumbashi from 1–3 June.
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Copperbelt Katanga Mining - African Copperbelt's Top Mining News
African Copperbelt's Top Mining Newscopperbeltkatangamining.com
Glencore to supply cobalt to GM in multi-year deal
Miner and commodities trader Glencore has inked a multi-year agreement with General Motors to provide the automaker with cobalt from its Murrin Murrin operation in Australia.
The US car producer has committed to making all-electric vehicles by the end of the decade, setting the goal of having 30 new EVs models, equivalent to 1 million electric cars, in the market by 2025.
“Climate change is real, and we want to be part of the solution by putting everyone in an electric vehicle,” chair and chief executive officer Mary Barra said in a media release.
GM will use Glencore’s cobalt in its Ultium battery cathodes, which currently power the Chevrolet Silverado EV, GMC Hummer EV and Cadillac Lyriq vehicles, the companies said.
The deal comes as automakers scramble to secure steady supply of battery metals, including cobalt, nickel, lithium and copper, to meet rising demand for EVs.
Some manufacturers, such as Tesla and Volkswagen have even announced intentions of becoming “actively involved in raw materials business”. Tesla’s Elon Musk seems particularly inclined to do so with lithium, as prices have reached what he calls “insane levels”.
The EV giant has recently secured lithium mining rights in Nevada and has off-take agreements for the battery metal with Liontown Resources and Ganfeng Lithium, China’s no.1 producer of the commodity. For cobalt, Tesla locked down supply from Glencore in 2020.
Detroit-based rival Ford Motor said on Monday it had signed a preliminary deal to buy lithium from a Lake Resources NL facility in Argentina, marking the first time Ford has publicly announced where it will procure the battery metal.
Glencore, the world’s largest cobalt producer thanks to its mines in the DRC, noted the metal makes up only 0.001% of the earth’s crust.
Its appeal to EV makers comes from the fact that it provides batteries with energy density that increases the range of their vehicles and boosts their life.
GM has several other agreements in place for lithium and rare earths and other materials.
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Food for thought on a Thursday
Frank
DRC Mining Community Prepares for a Big Bash in Lubumbashi in June as DRC Mining Week Returns
It’s official, DRC Mining Week is back in Lubumbashi from 1–3 June, and to say that the industry is excited about its homecoming is an understatement.
This long-running, award-winning and flagship expo and conference returns to the heart of the Copperbelt and the bustling mining hub of the DRC to celebrate the region’s unlimited resilience, successes and opportunities.
*The Main discussion will be the Development of the Battery Industry in Haut-Katanga thanks to the Manono Deposit that will be exploited by AVZ - Not might be, Will be for anyone still sitting on the Fence wondering atm
Cheers
Frank
Retrobyte
Hates a beer
I was in WFE too for a while - Brewer is long gone but the new reincarnation (PF1) is a basket case as well - has gone into voluntary suspension yet again!
Lost 24K on WFE, what a scam, Brewer what a scum!
PF1....I sold it immediately to claim the tax loss.
Hope you fared better.
bloke383
Regular
I'm not sure how the FIRB work exactly , but their intervention worked in our favour when Yibin wanted to become a strategic investor in 2020 .
With Felix Ts wish for his country to be a major player in the battery/ev evolution , I'm hoping he thinks it would be a better look for his gov't to have an Australian company , AVZ , play a major part & for a long time as well . His gov't is trying to change how the world views the DRC . I don't think it would be a good look for his gov't (which is trying to attract new investment & $) if AVZ gets "manuevered" out of the way anytime soon after spending years developing this project , no matter what spin could be put on a possible takeover .
The difference here about what happened to PSC in Zimbabwe is that we are so much more in the spotlight on the world stage , especially with all the large multi nationals attending the DRC/Africa Business Forum hosted by the UN last year
Fingers crossed we start to see the long list of anticipated announcements start to roll in this week ... Mining licence , BFS , funding , extra 15% etc Almost ... but not quite ...makes me wish there weren't all these public holidays
Retrobyte
Hates a beer
Frank
Top 20
AVZ Minerals: soon a Manono Lithium exploitation permit
The mining company AVZ Minerals obtained a favorable technical opinion from the Ministry of Mines at the beginning of this week.
This is the last step before acquiring an operating license and certification.
These last two steps will pave the way for the production of this strategic mineral.
AVZ Minerals had been waiting for the technical opinion for more than a year.
According to the representative of this Australian company in the DRC, AVZ had already obtained the favorable opinion from the Ministry of the Environment and this, after the presentation of the study on the environmental impact as well as the feasibility study.
In addition, the mining cadastre had expressed itself on this project by also giving its favorable opinion.
Another condition before the granting of an exploitation permit, the company must prove its financial capacity to develop the mining project.
All these conditions were already met.
Moreover, at the beginning of this month of April, the company AVZ Minerals received new financing of 7 million US dollars for the Manono project.
This is in addition to its investment valued at US$545.5 million.
Production is for 2023
It must be said that the company AVZ plans to start its production of Lithium in 2023.
However, it has not yet started construction work on its plant.
Despite everything, the company remains optimistic “This work will begin after obtaining the operating permit and the first phase of construction will only take 8 months,” said Baltazar Tshiseke, representative of AVZ Minerals in the DRC, three months ago.
In the meantime, the company has finalized its feasibility study.
The results indicate that the company would produce 700,000 tons of Lithium per year.
Thus, it has already concluded three production purchase agreements, in particular with the Chinese companies Shenzhen Chengxin Litium Group Co. and Yibin Tianyi Litium Industry Co. Ltd. The latter is one of the world's leading producers of battery materials.
The mining company AVZ Minerals obtained a favorable technical opinion from the Ministry of Mines at the beginning of this week.
This is the last step before acquiring an operating license and certification.
These last two steps will pave the way for the production of this strategic mineral.
AVZ Minerals had been waiting for the technical opinion for more than a year.
According to the representative of this Australian company in the DRC, AVZ had already obtained the favorable opinion from the Ministry of the Environment and this, after the presentation of the study on the environmental impact as well as the feasibility study.
In addition, the mining cadastre had expressed itself on this project by also giving its favorable opinion.
Another condition before the granting of an exploitation permit, the company must prove its financial capacity to develop the mining project.
All these conditions were already met.
Moreover, at the beginning of this month of April, the company AVZ Minerals received new financing of 7 million US dollars for the Manono project.
This is in addition to its investment valued at US$545.5 million.
Production is for 2023
It must be said that the company AVZ plans to start its production of Lithium in 2023.
However, it has not yet started construction work on its plant.
Despite everything, the company remains optimistic “This work will begin after obtaining the operating permit and the first phase of construction will only take 8 months,” said Baltazar Tshiseke, representative of AVZ Minerals in the DRC, three months ago.
In the meantime, the company has finalized its feasibility study.
The results indicate that the company would produce 700,000 tons of Lithium per year.
Thus, it has already concluded three production purchase agreements, in particular with the Chinese companies Shenzhen Chengxin Litium Group Co. and Yibin Tianyi Litium Industry Co. Ltd. The latter is one of the world's leading producers of battery materials.
The only negative for me with AVZ is the total domination of chinese entities , albeit they are first class world renowned coy.
Would of loved a European / US player/s in the mix, just makes me a bit paranoid with china / aussie relations so horrible, China wants to control the world, especially in the EV space, China have a big influence in Africa/ DRC, has been the case for over 30 yrs, so I bet they are salivating at the prospect of controlling the biggest hard rock lithium project on the planet, (not to mention the tin), IF they could devise a plan to do so outside of FIRB......
You only have to look at the situation with Jack Ma and Alibaba to know how powerful / influencial China State Govt is.!!
I hope you are right about Felix's wish for the world to see that DRC is a clean and honest govt, who is open for business, I like many are invested in AVZ for the super growth profile and divvie payments that goes with being in production , but also invested in GREENING this planet up so it can survive for many more generations.
AVZ will have a huge say in that and i want to be part of it.................so fuck off T/O ......ok Nige ?
imo
Samus
Top 20
I'd like to see this BFS released, be much more comfortable talking about any takeover once the real numbers are floated.
Thought being that we'd be much more likely to get something like real value once the numbers go public.
I'm not a proponent of a TO outcome but if it comes to it I'd hope not to see such a lousy result as we've seen in the past with capital raising etc.
Lets hope this BFS is released in short order, not least because it is time to get on with the mine/plant/infrastructure build. Hopefully the HEPP agreement is coming very shortly as another critical part of the development and allaying any potential delays on that front.
Any further go-slow progress after ML will be quite the irritation given how far behind we are on every timeline released by management.
I guess from now onwards we see how capable they really are and if they're not we'll see a TO.
Thought being that we'd be much more likely to get something like real value once the numbers go public.
I'm not a proponent of a TO outcome but if it comes to it I'd hope not to see such a lousy result as we've seen in the past with capital raising etc.
Lets hope this BFS is released in short order, not least because it is time to get on with the mine/plant/infrastructure build. Hopefully the HEPP agreement is coming very shortly as another critical part of the development and allaying any potential delays on that front.
Any further go-slow progress after ML will be quite the irritation given how far behind we are on every timeline released by management.
I guess from now onwards we see how capable they really are and if they're not we'll see a TO.
Frank
Top 20
*Fyi, speaking of the Centre of Excellence for Advanced Battery Research in the DRC
Did you see this Tweet from our friend / supporter / fellow SH Solo today,
Honda to invest $40 billion in EVs and $340 million in solid-state batteries
Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe has truly begun to wake up and smell the EV coffee lately, making several big announcements in 2022 that pertain to expanded electrification. In its latest news, Honda plans to invest about $40 billion over the next decade to deliver 30 BEVs around the globe.Despite this effort and additional funds allocated toward solid-state battery development, Honda is still very much in love with hybrid vehicles and plans to continue to promote them.
Honda Motor Co., Ltd. is a legacy automaker that has joined its competitors in sharing goals to expand electrification, striving toward 100% electric sales by 2040.
Honda adds solid-state batteries to its R&D to-do list
In addition to big funds toward EV production, Honda shared an additional investment of 43 billion yen ($343.2 million) to develop a pilot line to produce solid-state batteries two years from now.Following the development in 2024, Honda believes it can bring more energy-dense solid-state batteries to market near the end of the decade.
This timeline would sit on par with Honda’s strategy to truly begin ramping up global EV sales in 2030.
An EV with solid-state batteries would certainly help sweeten the pot for consumers, but there’s a fair chance other automakers will be delivering solid-state BEVs long before then.
Electrek’s Take
Oh Honda, what an interesting relationship we share.
The automaker has taken a lot of flack from us in the past for its lack of impetus toward BEVs – a hole it has since begun to try to claw its way out of.
$40 billion should certainly help, but you can’t buy time, and Honda has a lot of catching up to do.
News coming out of the Honda pressroom has been a lot more promising so far this year, and we do applaud the automaker for its change of heart.
Its electrification strategy makes sense given its current business model and how much of Honda’s sales come from hybrids, so we don’t mean to necessarily knock it.
The potential issue is that Honda is betting big that the global market will not truly be interested in BEVs until a decade from now.
That could be, but snowballing EV adoption combined with the extraordinary number of new and more affordable BEV options in the pipeline could say otherwise.
Will people still be buying hybrids in 2035 like Honda says?
Will Honda have enough of a BEV presence this decade to stay relevant?
Electrek
News, reviews, and analysis of the electric vehicle market. We provide coverage of the entire sustainable ecosystems and related products.
electrek.co
Food for thought on the Road to Mining Manono
Frank
Frank
Top 20
Mining: Senator Victorine Lwesse makes some recommendations to the Minister of Mines
Minister of Mines Antoinette Nsamba Kalambayi responded, Thursday, April 14, 2022, to the concerns of senators raised during the examination of the oral question with debate addressed to her by Senator Victorine Lwesse on the issue of mining in the DRC.
This question followed videos that went viral last year showing foreigners, including Chinese without titles or permits, exploiting minerals in South Kivu.
The answers of the boss of the mines did not, however, completely satisfy the author of the said oral question who, for this purpose, formulated to this member of the government Sama Lukonde the following 15 recommendations:
• Prohibiting the exploitation of raw minerals is the will of the legislator.
This will must not suffer from any exception or derogation so that the beginning of industrialization begins in our country;
• All central and provincial mining services must be involved so that there are no more phantom mining operators benefiting from the protection of those in high places. They are not listed anywhere, paying neither tax nor tax as if our country were a property without a master;
• Building factories to benefit from the added value of our metals should no longer remain a wishful thinking but rather an emergency to boost the economy of our country;
Accession of the DRC to the EAC: President Félix Tshisekedi insists on the urgency of the ratification of the texts governing the Community
The President of the Republic, Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, insisted on the urgency of the ratification of the texts governing the East African Community, during the forty-ninth meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Government of the Republic , which he chaired last Friday, by videoconference in Kinshasa.
"Given the interest and the challenges that this accession represents for the DRC, the President of the Republic urged the institutions concerned by the process of ratification, to be diligent so that our country gets in step", indicated in his account returned, the Minister of Communication and Media, government spokesperson, Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, stating that the outcome of this membership process will go through the ratification of the texts governing the EAC, to be in conformity with the Constitution.
While welcoming the accession of the DRC to the East African Community after a long period of negotiations, the Head of State said that this constitutes an opportunity both to strengthen peace and security, but also to attract and promote investment and capital inflows to support economic growth and improve the well-being of the people of our country.
He also insisted that the strengthening of cooperation between the governments of the DRC and Kenya, materialized by the Bilateral Cooperation Agreement (on agriculture, fishing and livestock), should receive the same attention by the ministers concerned, insofar as it constitutes an operational framework allowing the two States to pool their capacities for the optimal exploitation of the respective resources and to take full advantage of them for the two peoples.
The DRC, it is recalled, applied for membership in 2019, in the hope of improving commercial and political ties with its neighbors in East Africa.
The Heads of State of the East African Community approved the admission of the DRC to the bloc during a summit meeting on March 29.
The President of the Republic Félix Antoine Tshisekedi officially signed this membership on April 8 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Opportunities…
This membership, it is noted, will allow the Congolese among others to travel freely in other countries and trade will become much faster, simpler and cheaper, which should benefit businesses and consumers in all countries of the country. 'EAC.
Import taxes for goods recognized as being made in the DRC will be removed or greatly reduced upon entry into other countries, while transporting goods will become much cheaper.
It will give the DRC better access to facilities such as the Indian Ocean ports of Dar es Salaam and Mombasa.
According to the Congolese Minister of Mines who answered the oral question with debate sent to her by Senator Victorine Lwese Bakuamoyo on mining in the DRC, this production generated more than $618.8 million USD.
As for the concerns raised by the senator on the distribution of profits from the mining royalty of the territory of Walikale, the Minister Antoinette N’Samba indicated that these profits are distributed in accordance with article 526 of the Mining Regulations in force in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Food for thought on Mining Manono
Frank
Minister of Mines Antoinette Nsamba Kalambayi responded, Thursday, April 14, 2022, to the concerns of senators raised during the examination of the oral question with debate addressed to her by Senator Victorine Lwesse on the issue of mining in the DRC.
This question followed videos that went viral last year showing foreigners, including Chinese without titles or permits, exploiting minerals in South Kivu.
The answers of the boss of the mines did not, however, completely satisfy the author of the said oral question who, for this purpose, formulated to this member of the government Sama Lukonde the following 15 recommendations:
• Prohibiting the exploitation of raw minerals is the will of the legislator.
This will must not suffer from any exception or derogation so that the beginning of industrialization begins in our country;
• All central and provincial mining services must be involved so that there are no more phantom mining operators benefiting from the protection of those in high places. They are not listed anywhere, paying neither tax nor tax as if our country were a property without a master;
• Building factories to benefit from the added value of our metals should no longer remain a wishful thinking but rather an emergency to boost the economy of our country;
Accession of the DRC to the EAC: President Félix Tshisekedi insists on the urgency of the ratification of the texts governing the Community
The President of the Republic, Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, insisted on the urgency of the ratification of the texts governing the East African Community, during the forty-ninth meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Government of the Republic , which he chaired last Friday, by videoconference in Kinshasa.
"Given the interest and the challenges that this accession represents for the DRC, the President of the Republic urged the institutions concerned by the process of ratification, to be diligent so that our country gets in step", indicated in his account returned, the Minister of Communication and Media, government spokesperson, Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, stating that the outcome of this membership process will go through the ratification of the texts governing the EAC, to be in conformity with the Constitution.
While welcoming the accession of the DRC to the East African Community after a long period of negotiations, the Head of State said that this constitutes an opportunity both to strengthen peace and security, but also to attract and promote investment and capital inflows to support economic growth and improve the well-being of the people of our country.
He also insisted that the strengthening of cooperation between the governments of the DRC and Kenya, materialized by the Bilateral Cooperation Agreement (on agriculture, fishing and livestock), should receive the same attention by the ministers concerned, insofar as it constitutes an operational framework allowing the two States to pool their capacities for the optimal exploitation of the respective resources and to take full advantage of them for the two peoples.
The DRC, it is recalled, applied for membership in 2019, in the hope of improving commercial and political ties with its neighbors in East Africa.
The Heads of State of the East African Community approved the admission of the DRC to the bloc during a summit meeting on March 29.
The President of the Republic Félix Antoine Tshisekedi officially signed this membership on April 8 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Opportunities…
This membership, it is noted, will allow the Congolese among others to travel freely in other countries and trade will become much faster, simpler and cheaper, which should benefit businesses and consumers in all countries of the country. 'EAC.
Import taxes for goods recognized as being made in the DRC will be removed or greatly reduced upon entry into other countries, while transporting goods will become much cheaper.
It will give the DRC better access to facilities such as the Indian Ocean ports of Dar es Salaam and Mombasa.
Walikale territory in the DRC produced more than 48,000 tonnes of tin between 2019 and 2022
The territory of Walikale located in the province of North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo has produced 48,715.54 tonnes of tin since 2019 to date, informs Mrs. Antoinette N’Samba, Minister of Mines.
According to the Congolese Minister of Mines who answered the oral question with debate sent to her by Senator Victorine Lwese Bakuamoyo on mining in the DRC, this production generated more than $618.8 million USD.
As for the concerns raised by the senator on the distribution of profits from the mining royalty of the territory of Walikale, the Minister Antoinette N’Samba indicated that these profits are distributed in accordance with article 526 of the Mining Regulations in force in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Food for thought on Mining Manono
Frank
Frank
Top 20
EAC business leaders to explore opportunities in DR Congo
Regional business executives are planning a business trip to DR Congo early next month to engage their Congolese counterparts with a view to exploit business and investment opportunities in the vast country.
John Bosco Kalisa, CEO of the East African Business Council (EABC), noted this Saturday, April 16, a week after DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi, on April 8, signed the Treaty of accession by his country to the East African Community (EAC).
Kalisa told The New Times that his delegation also wants to bring their Congolese counterparts to speed about the opportunities provided by both the EAC Common Market and Custom Union frameworks.
They plan to travel “in the first week of May” and are keen on seeing Congolese business leaders also reciprocate the visit.
“On our side we are very ready and keen to host them,” Kalisa said.
“Already we have established excellent engagements and contact with the Federation des Enterprises du Congo (FEC) . They are very ready to host us,” Kalisa said, explaining that besides DR Congo capital, Kinshasa, his delegation also plans to travel to the eastern Congolese cities of Goma and Bukavu.
On April 12, EAC Secretary General, Peter Mathuki, told a press conference that young people in the region should take advantage of the huge market – about 300 million people – created with the entry of the DR Congo into the now seven-member regional economic bloc. During the virtual press conference, Mathuki indicated that the Secretariat will, in the near future, organize business trips to DR Congo and that Kinshasa is also planning to send business expeditions to regional countries as part of the new anticipated business interactions.
Among others, DR Congo offers its untapped vast arable land as a major investment opportunity.
The DR Congo is expected to bolster the bloc’s economic potential through various ways including opening the corridor from the Indian Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean, as well as North to South, hence expanding the economic potential of the region.
DR Congo is the world’s biggest producer of cobalt, a major component in the manufacture of rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, and Africa’s main copper producer. It is a major producer of gold, diamonds, uranium, coltan, oil and other precious metals, making it one of the most resource-rich countries in the world.
Eleven percent of the goods the vast country consumes come from the six other partner states in the bloc, Mathuki said, while 35 per cent of what DR Congo consumes comes from China and other places.
Now that DR Congo is part of the EAC, Mathuki said, “We will be transforming or taking advantage of that consumption” so that whatever is produced in the region can find market in DR Congo.
The EABC delegation will comprise at least 10 people from each partner state, Kalisa said.
Their areas of interest will include agribusiness, banking, mining, construction, manufacturing and the telecommunication sectors.
The EABC will also include tourism industry players in the trip. Kalisa said that on Tuesday, April 19, he will sign an agreement in Nairobi, Kenya, to organise tour operators.
Meanwhile, whether it is invited to partake in the Kinshasa trip or not, the Kigali-based East Africa Tourism Platform (EATP) also has plans of its own.
Yves Ngenzi, the EATP Coordinator, said: “On our side, we are working on some collaboration with DRC tourism sector in different areas and also having them join the EATP as full members through their national tourism apex body for the private sector.”
Earlier, Jeannette Rugero, a Rwandan tour guide and driver, told The New Times that she is now encouraged “more than before” to explore opportunities in DR Congo.
She said: “Congo is a very beautiful country with diverse tourist attractions; national parks, culture, landscape and so much more that people want to see.
The insecurity in the east is just in one part but there are many others that are secure and this is where I want to start exploring and benefiting from.
The Congolese will now feel more East African and more welcome, and vice versa,” she said.
Tshisekedi’s accession signature on April 8 immediately brought his country into the realms and provisions of all the protocols and regional policies of the EAC.
After signing the Treaty of accession, Kinshasa now has up to September 29 to undertake internal and constitutional processes to ratify the EAC Treaty and submit to the EAC Secretary General, and subsequently join all programmes and activities of the bloc.
Chances are high that Kinshasa which has shown a strong inclination to fast-track the process could actually wrap up its internal and constitutional processes to ratify the EAC Treaty, and submit, much earlier than September 29.
www.newtimes.co.rw/news/eac-business-leaders-explore-opportunities-dr-congo
Europe's reliance on Russian gas imports has become a problem amid the Ukraine war. Now, it's looking to Africa for alternatives.
Europe is looking to Africa for its energy needs as countries seek to cut their reliance on Russian imports amid the war in Ukraine.Italy — the third-largest European Union (EU) economy — has pushed ahead in pursuing deals, with energy supermajor Eni signing an agreement on Wednesday with state-owned Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company to promote gas exports to Europe.
Earlier in the same week, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi visited Algeria, where Eni signed an agreement to buy more natural gas from Algerian state energy firm Sonatrach through 2024, the Italian company said in a press release. That's equivalent to 12% of Italy's gas consumption in 2021, per Bloomberg.
Algeria already supplies gas to Europe via three pipelines, one of which goes to Italy. Two other pipelines are linked to Spain.
Italy's deals came on the back of a meeting among European ambassadors and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company last Monday that sought to "strengthen partnership" in the energy sector, the company tweeted last Monday.
Draghi is slated to travel to central and southern Africa this week with potential deals in the Republic of Congo and Angola, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
These potential deals, together with the extra natural-gas volumes Italy has already secured from Algeria, would be able to replace over half the supply it gets from Russia as early as 2023, according to Bloomberg.
The EU is a major customer of Russian energy.
Earlier in April, the trade bloc approved a ban on Russian coal.
It's also considering an oil embargo, but has not mentioned cutting off natural gas as Europe remains highly reliant on piped gas from the country.
However, in an interview published Sunday, Draghi told Corriere della Sera that Europe can wean itself off Russian energy imports through diversification in a time frame that was "shorter than what we imagined just a month ago."
"We no longer want to depend on Russian gas, because economic dependence must not become political subjugation," he told the outlet.
"To do this, we need to diversify energy sources and find new suppliers."
www.businessinsider.in
bloke383
Regular
Still happening , postponed or cancelled ?
Interesting.
Perhaps AVZ didn't like some of the wording used and they're now rewriting?
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