10 Local Content Policies in the Energy Transition Era …
319
10.3.1 The Country’s Geology and Geography
Resource-rich countries must assess the geography and geology of their
extractive resources. The different nature of the topography demands a
different type of policy objective as well as expectation. For example, a
country like Tanzania where most of the 42 tcf worth of gas is found
offshore compared to Uganda and Kenya where their oil resources are
found onshore.
28 The different governments must ask the multinational
oil companies to assess and understand what probable opportunities
can be availed from the nature of the resource’s geology.
29 Rather than
implementing policies that eventually become redundant due to the
impossibility of fulfilling the objectives.
Governments must obtain information from the foreign investors
to provide ‘early data’ on the skills and goods and services needed.
This will enable timeous preparation from the domestic suppliers and
workforce. Training and costs differ due to the nature of the geology.
IPIECA states that ‘geologists and specialist engineers (those trained
at the tertiary-education level) are by far outnumbered by skilled and
semi-skilled construction tradesmen, metal and mechanical tradesmen,
electrical and electronic tradesmen and other experienced heavy industry
machine and plant operator’.
30 Such costs are associated with the nature
of the resources’ geology, in frontier countries such as Mozambique,
their high risks of exploration. The investors would expect lower local
content quotas as compared to reserves found in countries like Nigeria
and Angola due to a ready established extractive industry that hinders
the costs of production.
28 Roder, Kai. “‘Bulldozer politics’, state-making and (neo-)extractive industries in Tanzania’s
gold mining sector.” The Extractive Industries and Society 6.2 (2019): 407–412.
29 Marcel, Valérie, et al. “A local content decision tree for emerging producers.” Chatham House,
The Royal Institute of International Affairs: London, UK (2016).
30 Ibid.
319
10.3.1 The Country’s Geology and Geography
Resource-rich countries must assess the geography and geology of their
extractive resources. The different nature of the topography demands a
different type of policy objective as well as expectation. For example, a
country like Tanzania where most of the 42 tcf worth of gas is found
offshore compared to Uganda and Kenya where their oil resources are
found onshore.
28 The different governments must ask the multinational
oil companies to assess and understand what probable opportunities
can be availed from the nature of the resource’s geology.
29 Rather than
implementing policies that eventually become redundant due to the
impossibility of fulfilling the objectives.
Governments must obtain information from the foreign investors
to provide ‘early data’ on the skills and goods and services needed.
This will enable timeous preparation from the domestic suppliers and
workforce. Training and costs differ due to the nature of the geology.
IPIECA states that ‘geologists and specialist engineers (those trained
at the tertiary-education level) are by far outnumbered by skilled and
semi-skilled construction tradesmen, metal and mechanical tradesmen,
electrical and electronic tradesmen and other experienced heavy industry
machine and plant operator’.
30 Such costs are associated with the nature
of the resources’ geology, in frontier countries such as Mozambique,
their high risks of exploration. The investors would expect lower local
content quotas as compared to reserves found in countries like Nigeria
and Angola due to a ready established extractive industry that hinders
the costs of production.
28 Roder, Kai. “‘Bulldozer politics’, state-making and (neo-)extractive industries in Tanzania’s
gold mining sector.” The Extractive Industries and Society 6.2 (2019): 407–412.
29 Marcel, Valérie, et al. “A local content decision tree for emerging producers.” Chatham House,
The Royal Institute of International Affairs: London, UK (2016).
30 Ibid.