CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 10, 2026/APO Group/ –Venezuela will send an official government delegation to African Energy Week (AEW) 2026 in Cape Town, bringing senior figures from its Ministry of People’s Power for Hydrocarbons and its national university for oil and gas education to the continent’s premier energy event. The delegation includes Ricardo Gómez, Vice Minister of Commercial Policy; Celia Bejarano, Rector of the Universidad Venezolana de los Hidrocarburos (UVH); and Carlos Espinoza, a professional advisor in the Ministry’s petroleum division. The delegation’s participation marks the latest step in an Africa-Venezuela energy partnership that has gathered momentum throughout 2026.
 




 

In February, the African Energy Chamber (AEC) took a group of African energy leaders to Caracas. While there, it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry and state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA). The agreement commits both sides to work together on upstream development and modernizing refineries. It also opens the door to shipping liquefied petroleum gas and bitumen to Africa and broadening technical training. Venezuela is an honorary member of the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO). It later sent Vice Minister Arturo Gil to Cape Town to build on the agreement.

AEW 2026 is built around dealmaking, with sessions spanning the full energy value chain and a clear focus on moving capital into projects. Senior Venezuelan representation in Cape Town gives African national oil companies and investors direct access to the officials driving Venezuela’s hydrocarbons revival and fosters workforce cooperation with the continent.

Ricardo Gómez heads the Vice Ministry of Commercial Policy, the office within the Ministry responsible for coordinating and advancing the sale of Venezuela’s hydrocarbons. His portfolio aligns closely with the MoU’s trade provisions, which identified liquefied petroleum gas and bitumen as potential exports to Africa. Venezuela’s resource base gives the trade relationship considerable depth, with the country holding some 300 billion barrels of oil reserves and large volumes of natural gas.

Celia Bejarano leads UVH, Venezuela’s public university for hydrocarbons education, headquartered in Los Teques. The university has become a cornerstone of the Africa-Venezuela partnership. During an AEC working visit to Caracas, the Chamber and UVH worked through how African engineers could train at the university. The AEC has since committed to sending 10 to 15 participants from across Africa through dedicated technical programs at UVH, drawing on Venezuela’s decades of producing heavy crude onshore and developing offshore fields.

“When we went to Caracas in February, we said the relationship had to go both ways. Now Venezuela is coming to Cape Town, and I want our companies to make the most of it, whether that means trade in gas and bitumen or getting more of our young engineers trained at the university,” said NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the AEC.

The Caracas MoU also set up a joint working group tasked with pinpointing investment prospects and lining up projects for African and Venezuelan companies. AEW 2026 gives the partnership’s African counterparts a platform to engage the delegation in person as the work moves forward.

African Energy Week 2026 takes place October 12-16 at the Cape Town International Convention Center. To register as a delegate, visit  https://apo-opa.co/4zr7ekJ.

 

PEMBA, Mozambique, October 9, 2026/APO Group/ –SLB (NYSE: SLB) (www.SLB.com) announced the opening of a new fluids systems plant in Pemba, Mozambique. The new facility strengthens in-country capacity to prepare, store and deliver drilling and completion fluids for offshore operations, reinforcing the infrastructure needed as Mozambique’s offshore activity grows and its role as a strategic energy hub for East Africa continues to expand.

The commissioning of the plant, also known as a liquid mud plant, coincides with SLB marking 70 years of operations in Mozambique. It reflects the company’s long-term commitment to investing in people, infrastructure and capability that support the country’s long-term offshore energy development plans.

 




  

With an initial storage capacity of 21,000 barrels, the liquid mud plant provides a scalable platform for future growth, supporting multiple customers and rising offshore activity while improving logistics and enhancing operational flexibility.

“As SLB marks 70 years in Mozambique, this investment reflects our confidence in the country’s future and our commitment to supporting its energy ambitions,” said Miguel Baptista, Central, East and Southern Africa, Managing Director, SLB. The new liquid mud plant strengthens local energy infrastructure, expands opportunities for local content development, and enhances our ability to support customers as they deliver some of Africa’s most significant offshore energy resources.”

The liquid mud plant project was delivered with strong local participation and that momentum is expected to continue into operations. During project delivery, more than 100 jobs were created in Pemba with nationals representing 80% of the workforce, reflecting a focus on building local capability.

The project was delivered with a strong focus on safety, operational integrity, and quality, achieving more than 67,000 hours worked without a recordable safety incident.

This key infrastructure strengthens SLB’s ability to support consistent service quality and enhance supply chain readiness for increasing offshore activity across Mozambique, supporting customers execute safely and efficiently while developing local skills and expertise.

Key Points:

• SLB has commissioned a new fluids system plant in Pemba, expanding in-country drilling and completion fluids capability for offshore operations.
• With an initial storage capacity of 21,000 barrels, the facility provides a scalable platform to support growing offshore activity in Mozambique.
• The investment marks the next phase of SLB’s growth in Mozambique, strengthening local capability and supporting long-term offshore energy development.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, October 9, 2026/APO Group/ –The South African Energy Storage Association (SAESA) (www.SAESA.org.za) welcomes the prioritisation of 4,600 MW of battery energy storage under the first Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2025 Section 34 determination.

 




  

The timing is significant. Recent Integrated Energy Plan (IEP) modelling and assumptions discussions highlighted a fundamental shift that South Africa’s energy planning now needs to capture: we cannot plan the future power system by counting megawatts of generation alone.

We must plan for when energy is available, where it is available, how it moves through a constrained grid and how it is stored and dispatched when the system needs it most.

The announcement reinforces that shift. Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are becoming critical system infrastructure, supporting flexibility, reducing avoidable curtailment, shifting energy into periods of demand and strengthening security of supply.

For SAESA, the message for the IEP is clear: storage, flexibility and system services must be modelled as integral components of South Africa’s future electricity architecture, with their contribution considered from the outset of generation planning.

“The IEP must plan the power system we are becoming, not simply model the power system we have inherited,” says SAESA.

Partnership with C&I Energy + Storage Summit

SAESA is an association partner of the C&I Energy + Storage Summit, created by VUKA Group, taking place on 28–29 October 2026 at The Maslow Hotel, Sandton, Johannesburg.

The summit brings together commercial and industrial energy users, project developers, financiers, regulators and solution providers to explore practical approaches to energy security, procurement and storage deployment.

For businesses assessing how storage can support their operations, the event offers an opportunity to meet SAESA and engage with the wider energy community on the decisions shaping South Africa’s evolving electricity system.

Commercial and industrial energy decision-makers are invited to apply to attend as hosted buyers. Qualifying buyers receive complimentary summit access and curated opportunities to engage with industry partners.

 

Meet SAESA at C&I Energy + Storage Summit: Join the Hosted Buyer Programme

The Hosted Buyer Programme connects commercial and industrial energy decision-makers with solution providers shaping South Africa’s evolving private energy market.

Qualified energy buyers receive complimentary access to the summit and curated engagement with industry partners exploring energy procurement, storage deployment and project development.

Apply for the Hosted Buyer Programme (https://apo-opa.co/4ehLijJ)