Two South African countries, Namibia and Botswana, are in discussions to jointly fund the construction of an oil refinery, aiming to strengthen regional energy security and capitalise on Namibia’s burgeoning upstream oil sector.
The proposed refinery was a key topic during Namibian President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s recent working visit to Gaborone, where she held bilateral talks with Botswana’s President Duma Boko.
According to a statement from the Namibian Presidency, both leaders stressed the urgent need for “concrete programmes and projects” that would bridge economic disparities and create sustainable jobs across the region.
Speaking during the meeting, Nandi-Ndaitwah highlighted the importance of regional cooperation in developing newly discovered energy resources.
“Now that Namibia has oil and gas, we cannot claim this to be a Namibian resource. It’s a resource in our region, it’s a resource in the neighbourhood, and we can all benefit from it,” she said.
In response, President Boko underscored the potential viability of the refinery when viewed from a regional perspective rather than a national one.
“The president was indicating to me after the discovery of oil and gas in Namibia the prospect of establishing a refinery, which on some advice would not be viable because of the size of the population”.
“But it becomes viable if we take the population as not just the people of Namibia, but the people of this sub-region more pointedly, and the people of the African continent more broadly,” Boko stated.
The refinery initiative is aligned with Namibia’s growing prominence in the oil and gas sector, particularly following major offshore discoveries in the Orange Basin by global energy companies such as TotalEnergies, Chevron, BW Energy, and Galp.
Several of these companies, including BW Energy and TotalEnergies, are expected to make final investment decisions (FIDs) next year, which could significantly transform Namibia’s economic landscape.
A joint Namibia-Botswana refinery is expected to reduce both countries’ dependence on imported refined petroleum products, while unlocking value-added opportunities from local crude resources.
Although specific project details remain under discussion, officials from both nations agree on the refinery’s potential to drive economic growth, generate employment, and alleviate poverty.
Namibia and other hydrocarbon-rich nations in Southern Africa—such as Mozambique—are increasingly entering cross-border energy agreements to boost infrastructure and regional energy security.
Earlier this month, Mozambique signed a $1.5 billion deal with Zambia to build a cross-border gas pipeline. Just days after, the former also contracted Nigeria’s Aiteo Group to construct a new oil refinery.
With Namibia and Botswana ranking among the world’s most economically unequal countries, the proposed oil refinery is seen as a transformative project that could help reduce unemployment and close the widening poverty gap across Southern Africa.
