Environmentalists picket African Energy Week, urging an end to new oil and gas exploration

Climate activists converged on Cape Town, South Africa, outside the African Energy Week conference on Tuesday, decrying new oil and gas exploration across the continent. Greenpeace Africa and Extinction Rebellion campaigners condemned energy companies for prioritizing profits over people and the environment, accusing them of exacerbating climate change and endangering vulnerable communities.

Siya Myeza, a climate and energy campaigner with Greenpeace Africa, labeled the gathering "Africa Exploitation Week" and alleged the industry was driving environmental ruin and poverty. Police intervened, removing protesters sporting shirts with the slogan "Make polluters pay." The demonstrations unfold as South Africa pushes for expanded oil and gas development to boost investment and energy security.

The government touts natural gas as a supplementary to renewables, claiming gas-fired power plants could deliver electricity during lulls in wind and solar output. Despite legal challenges, British energy giant Shell intends to drill up to five deepwater wells in the Northern Cape Ultra Deep block to explore for and assess oil and gas reserves.

However, environmental approval for the project has faced opposition. Extinction Rebellion's Judy Scott-Goldman acknowledged renewable energy would be discussed at the conference but insisted campaigners opposed promoting new fossil fuel exploration. She warned that expanding fossil fuel use contravenes commitments under the Paris climate accord to curb emissions.

She cited fires, floods, and rising food prices as climate change consequences, warning of potential migration and social unrest.