"The country is self-sufficient to cover its average annual consumption of around 420 thousand metric tons of butane gas, and the specifications of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas used in the country comply with those established in Executive Decree No. 288/14 of 25 September", informed José Barroso, Secretary of State for Oil and Gas.
The person in charge – who was speaking this Thursday at the 'Everything About Butane Gas' workshop – indicated that the importance of butane gas "is evident in its application for social residential use and industrial use", reads a statement from the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, to which VerAngola had access.
According to the Secretary of State, this market has mainly two companies - Sonangol's Refining and Petrochemical Business Unit, owner of the Luanda Refinery, and Angola LNG - dedicated to production and distribution "and is dominated by just five companies and a vast network of private commercial agents, who are dedicated to the wholesale and retail resale of butane gas in transportable cylinders", adds the note.
Regarding piped gas, José Barroso reported that currently "there are only six installation companies" and two inspectors with authorization from the Petroleum Derivatives Regulatory Institute (IRDP).
"With regard to piped gas, at the moment there are only six installation companies and two inspection companies authorized by the IRDP, which in our opinion is a very small number of companies given the size of the country, whose promotion should be one of the objectives of this workshop ", he said, quoted in the statement.
Already speaking on the sidelines of the meeting, the person responsible made it known that there are approximately five million gas cylinders in circulation, however 75 percent are in "poor condition", having taken the opportunity to appeal, "from now on, the need to factories for the manufacture of bottles, plus facilities for the reconditioning and requalification of these containers".
Thus, he said a "space for private initiative" would open up. "A space is opening up for the private sector, for investments in the various lines of business in the butane gas segment. We also appeal to the industrial, hotel, construction and other sectors that conform their activity to current gas legislation", he indicated, mentioned in the guardianship statement.
Already cited by Angop, the official also informed that more than half of the production (90 percent) comes from Angola LNG, while the remaining six and four percent relate to Sonangol and Chevron, respectively, with the latter serving exclusively Cabinda.
Among other aspects, he highlighted that the priority is to respond to the national market, with the remaining butane gas being targeted for export, especially to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Congo, writes Angop.
