Worldwide: Energy and Natural Resources

On 9 July 2026, the Western Cape Division of the High Court handed down judgment in Van Zyl and Others v Minister of Water and Sanitation and Others (Van Zyl Judgment), reviewing and setting aside the decision by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to issue a water use licence (WUL) to the Cederberg Municipality (the Municipality).

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (“NUPRC” or “Commission”) formally announced the commencement of the 2025 Licensing Round, which began on 1st December 2025. The round offers 50 oil and gas blocks spanning frontier, onshore, shallow-water, and deep-water acreages. The blocks are located across Nigeria’s sedimentary basins, namely the Niger Delta Basin, Chad Basin, Benue Trough, Anambra Basin, and Dahomey (Benin) Basin.

This week, East Africa continues to attract significant attention from investors and development partners, with major initiatives shaping the region's economic and industrial trajectory.

South Africa loses nearly half its treated water to leaks, faulty meters, and unbilled connections - a crisis costing municipalities billions annually. Performance-based contracts offer a solution by tying contractor payment to measurable water loss reduction, but implementing them requires navigating complex procurement regulations and choosing the right contracting model.

South African municipalities are losing over 46% of treated water through non-revenue water (NRW), a crisis driven by infrastructure decay, metering failures, and weak governance. Performance-based contracts (PBCs) offer a promising solution by tying private-sector payment to measurable water savings, yet regulatory complexity and risk allocation challenges have prevented their widespread adoption. This analysis examines the legal and procurement barriers that municipalities face when attempting to implemen

South Africa's data centre boom presents a critical infrastructure challenge: can aging water systems and fragile utilities support decades of operation while protecting constitutional water rights? As communities mobilize against new developments and Eskom grapples with surplus capacity, the decisions made today will determine whether digital growth strengthens or strains the nation's resources.

Nigeria has introduced a new Tax Remission Order for 2026 targeting deep offshore oil and gas projects, establishing a framework of fiscal incentives designed to stimulate investment in the sector. This regulatory development carries significant implications for both domestic and international investors evaluating opportunities in Nigeria's offshore energy landscape.

Working in the oil and gas sector has taught attorney Amore Carstens Petersen that technical excellence is only one part of leadership in a commercially complex, technically demanding, and historically...

The Petroleum Industry Act 2021 separated upstream regulation from midstream and downstream regulation, but how does that separation apply to pipeline infrastructure that sits between production, transportation, processing and export? This analysis examines the statutory basis of pipeline licensing after Executive Order No. 9 of 2026, how jurisdiction is allocated between the NUPRC and the NMDPRA, and what this means for operators, lenders and project sponsors.

Ghana and Nigeria are witnessing a transformative period in their energy and natural resources sectors, marked by major capital investments, regulatory reforms, and infrastructure development. From petroleum hub agreements and seismic exploration to utility-scale solar projects and mining law amendments, both nations are strategically positioning themselves to convert resource endowment into sustained industrial capacity.

The Nigerian Mining Industry is positioning itself as a key driver of economic diversification through strategic reforms and partnerships. The Federal Government's Seven-Point Agenda...

Nigeria's solid minerals sector has achieved significant revenue growth and begun developing domestic processing capacity, yet faces critical challenges in converting ambitious policy frameworks into operational infrastructure. With the 2016 Mining Roadmap concluded and new fiscal reforms in place, the sector must now demonstrate whether it can bridge the gap between policy ambition and industrial execution while addressing persistent issues like illegal mining and regulatory implementation.