Climate activists picketed outside the African Energy Week conference in Cape Town on Tuesday, calling for an end to new oil and gas exploration across Africa.
Campaigners from Greenpeace Africa and Extinction Rebellion accused overseas energy companies of profiting at the expense of African lives and ecosystems. Greenpeace Africa campaigner Siya Myeza branded the gathering "Africa Exploitation Week" in comments to the Associated Press.
Protesters wore "Make polluters pay" T-shirts, and some were removed by police, according to Africanews and AP reporting from the scene.
The protest targets South Africa's push to expand oil and gas in the name of investment and energy security; the government presents gas-fired power as a complement to wind and solar in the country's energy mix.
Shell plans up to five deepwater wells in the Northern Cape Ultra Deep block off the west coast despite legal setbacks, and the project's environmental approval faces appeals. Extinction Rebellion's Cape Town representative acknowledged renewables would feature at the conference but said promoting new exploration contradicts Paris climate commitments.
