The Western Cape High Court has delivered a significant blow to energy giants TotalEnergies and Shell by setting aside the government’s environmental authorisation for offshore oil and gas exploration along the South-West Coast.
The ruling, delivered on Wednesday, 13 August, halts planned drilling in the area known as Block 5/6/7 and has been hailed as a landmark victory for environmental justice and coastal communities.
The legal challenge was brought by environmental rights organisations, The Green Connection and Natural Justice. They argued that the approval granted to TotalEnergies EP South Africa (Teepsa) was based on a flawed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The court agreed, finding that the assessment failed to adequately consider the severe socio-economic consequences of a potential oil spill on small-scale fishing and coastal livelihoods. This offshore drilling project faced strong opposition from the outset.
The judgment sends the matter back to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) for reconsideration. Judge Nobahle Mangcu-Lockwood ordered that before any new decision is made, the energy companies must conduct and submit new, comprehensive assessments and that a full public participation process must be followed.
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Flawed assessments and lack of transparency
The court identified several critical deficiencies in the original approval process. Key among them was the failure to make the Oil Spill and Blowout Contingency Plans public before the authorisation was granted, which denied affected communities the opportunity to comment on emergency preparedness.
Furthermore, the judge noted that the EIA did not properly assess the project’s full lifecycle climate impacts, the potential cross-border environmental harm to neighbouring Namibia, or fully comply with South Africa’s Integrated Coastal Management Act. This ruling on offshore drilling reinforces the legal requirements for transparency and thorough risk evaluation.
Reacting to the verdict, TotalEnergies stated that it, along with its joint venture partners, acknowledges the court’s decision and is assessing the judgment to decide on its next course of action. The company had intended to transfer the environmental authorisation to Shell to conduct the exploration.
Environmental groups celebrated the outcome, with The Green Connection’s Strategic Lead, Liziwe McDaid, stating, “Our country’s laws demand full, open, and honest assessment, not partial studies, not secrecy, and not ignoring inconvenient truths.” This legal battle over offshore drilling sets a powerful precedent for future energy projects in the country.
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