Plans to turn Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal into a liquefied natural gas (LNG) hub have been given a boost.

The Zululand Energy Terminal (ZET), the entity at the centre of the ZAR15 billion project to build an LNG import terminal at the port, has signed a heads of agreement with multinational oil and gas behemoth ExxonMobil to use the port to import its product into South Africa.

According to CNBCAfrica, ExxonMobil hopes to supply South Africa with more than 40 million tons a year (mtpa) of LNG by 2030.

Engineering News reports that the preliminary deal with ExxonMobil follows an agreement signed between utility Eskom and ZET, which will see the state energy producer become a ‘foundation customer’ for the terminal. The LNG will power Eskom’s planned 3 GW gas-to-power (GtP) project for Richards Bay.

It is envisaged that the ZAR100 billion GtP facility will be developed by Eskom in partnership with the private sector.

The project is still at the early front-end engineering design stage, and it still needs environmental and regulatory approvals before a final investment decision by 2028, according to Engineering News

It is envisaged that the first phase of ZET will feature a floating storage unit and an onshore regassification system with capacity of around 3 mtpa. A second phase will boost total volumes to 4.5 mtpa.

23 June 2026
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