With new wells planned and ambitions to supply enough domestic gas to support up to 300 MW of power generation within the next two years, Fortesa Founder and Chairman Rogers Beall sees onshore natural gas as a powerful driver of affordable electricity, industrialization and economic growth in Senegal.
By Ajong Mbapndah L
As Senegal’s energy landscape enters a defining new phase, Fortesa Energy International is making the case for onshore natural gas to play a bigger role in powering the country’s economic ambitions.
With offshore oil production underway and LNG adding a new dimension to Senegal’s energy profile, Fortesa Founder and Chairman Rogers Beall believes the country has an equally compelling opportunity closer to home: developing domestic onshore gas to deliver more affordable electricity, support industrial growth, reduce dependence on imported fuels and create jobs.
Fortesa has built its operations around that proposition. The company has developed local technical expertise, installed pipelines and production infrastructure, drilled onshore wells and supplied gas to Senegal’s domestic market. Beall considers the development and retention of Senegalese expertise across the company’s operations among Fortesa’s most important achievements.
The company is now preparing for another phase of expansion. Having begun bringing Senegalese and other African partners into new well developments in 2023, Fortesa plans to drill multiple new onshore wells targeting the domestic Gas-to-Power market. Beall says the company expects to be in a position to supply enough gas to fuel up to 300 MW of power generation within the next two years.
For Beall, however, unlocking Senegal’s full energy potential will require more than resources beneath the ground. He argues that a more predictable and streamlined regulatory environment is needed to encourage investment, accelerate project development and give both local and international operators greater confidence to deploy capital.
He also sees significant opportunities beyond Fortesa’s own operations, pointing to further development of Senegal’s major offshore discoveries and producing assets as potential sources of additional revenues, employment and investment.
In this interview with Pan African Visions, Rogers Beall discusses Fortesa’s next phase of drilling, the potential of Senegal’s onshore gas, local content and skills development, opportunities around the country’s offshore discoveries, the investment reforms he believes are needed, and why domestic natural gas could become a powerful engine for Senegal’s industrial and economic transformation.
Fortesa Energy International has established a significant presence in Senegal. How has the company’s journey evolved, and which achievements stand out most for you?
From our Texas foundation in early 1997 to today, one of our most rewarding achievements has been developing and retaining local technical expertise across virtually all functions within Fortesa.
From there, we progressed into pipeline installation, developing production infrastructure and undertaking new onshore drilling for both exploitation and exploration.
Throughout that journey, we have worked hard to comply with evolving government requirements, even as increasing regulatory complexity has sometimes resulted in delays.
Senegal has entered a new era with offshore oil and LNG production. How is Fortesa positioning its onshore business within this changing energy landscape?
The risks associated with onshore exploration and production are very different from those associated with deepwater offshore operations, and problems onshore can generally be easier to address.
Our concern is that regulatory requirements developed to address the environmental, health and safety risks associated with offshore operations have increasingly been applied to onshore operators as well.
In our experience, this has made onshore operations more costly and time-consuming. It can also make it more difficult for local operators to grow and build successful businesses because of regulatory inefficiencies and lengthy compliance processes.
What are the latest developments in Fortesa’s operations, and what should stakeholders expect in terms of exploration, production and future investment?
Beginning in 2023, Fortesa started bringing Senegalese and other African partners into our operations on a new-well basis, and that approach has worked well.
We are now preparing to drill multiple new onshore wells targeting the local Gas-to-Power market and further field development.
Our expectation is that Fortesa could have the capacity to provide enough gas to fuel up to 300 MW of power generation within the next two years. That represents an important opportunity not only for Fortesa but also for Senegal’s domestic energy market.
Based on your experience, how would you describe Senegal’s current investment environment for oil and gas, and what reforms would encourage greater long-term investment?
Since the major deepwater discoveries, Senegal has, in our view, evolved into a very difficult legal, investment and regulatory environment.
We believe the 2019 Petroleum Code has not proved sufficiently attractive to either local or international oil and gas operators. As a result, promotional efforts have not produced the level of investment that might otherwise be possible.
There needs to be a reassessment of what is commercially viable for private investors who are being asked to take significant exploration and development risks.
Creating a more cost-effective and predictable environment would encourage investment in existing fields while also supporting the search for new discoveries.
Beyond projects already under development, where do you see Senegal’s biggest untapped energy opportunities?
Further investment in Senegal’s already discovered and producing offshore oil and gas assets represents one of the biggest opportunities.
Advancing projects such as Teranga-Yakaar and moving ahead with additional development phases at Sangomar and Greater Tortue Ahmeyim could significantly strengthen Senegal’s energy sector.
These developments could generate additional revenues, employment and tax receipts. Importantly, much of the geological uncertainty has already been reduced through the substantial investment and technical work undertaken by deepwater operators.
That existing knowledge and data provide Senegal with an important foundation on which to build.
You have been a strong advocate for domestic natural gas. How could increased gas production support power generation, industrialization and Senegal’s broader economy?
Using affordable domestically produced natural gas to displace more expensive imported heavy fuel oil and LNG can be transformative for Senegal.
Reliable and cost-effective power production is essential for improving the economy, strengthening the balance of payments and attracting value-added industries that create employment.
Natural gas development can provide one of the most timely options for reducing dependence on expensive imported fuels while supporting dependable electricity generation.
For me, this is one of the single most important keys to unlocking Senegal’s economic potential.
What lessons has Fortesa learned from operating in Senegal, and what could other African countries seeking to develop their energy resources take from that experience?
Reform and streamline the regulatory framework.
Governments should also establish clear time limits within which agencies and state partners must either approve or reject documents submitted by operators.
Investors need predictability. When companies know the requirements, understand the timelines and receive decisions within a reasonable period, they can plan investments more effectively and move projects forward.
Local content and skills development have become central to Africa’s energy debate. How has Fortesa contributed to employment, training and capacity building in Senegal?
From our establishment to the present day, Fortesa has relied heavily on full-time employees and associates, with minimal outsourcing across our technical, administrative and operational functions.
That process begins with entry-level recruitment, including interns from universities and technical schools as well as people from communities around our onshore operational areas.
Fortesa does not rely on international oilfield service companies for drilling, pipeline installation, logging, cementing or geotechnical requirements.
Building these capabilities locally has been an important part of our operating model. It develops skills, retains knowledge and helps build local capacity within Senegal’s energy industry.
Why are platforms such as African Energy Week important for attracting investment, building partnerships and advancing Africa’s energy priorities?
They provide opportunities to learn from the successes of others, network, discover new concepts and identify financing options.
Those exchanges are critical for African investors because no company or investor has everything right or possesses every resource needed to succeed.
African Energy Week brings many of those resources, ideas, investors and industry players together annually. That exchange can help companies develop partnerships and find solutions to challenges they cannot necessarily address alone.
Looking ahead, what is your long-term vision for Fortesa Energy in Senegal, and what role do you see the company playing in the country’s next phase of energy development?
Our vision is to help fuel Senegal through onshore natural gas discoveries and development.
We want to sell gas at a fair and sustainable price — for example, around US$8 per MCF — that can support continued development while enabling cost-effective power production.
Affordable and reliable electricity can help Senegal attract new industries, create jobs and strengthen economic activity.
At the same time, we want to continue increasing reserves by developing resources that are currently idle or untapped.
For Fortesa, the opportunity is straightforward: find more Senegalese gas, develop it efficiently and use it to help power Senegal’s next phase of growth.
