Women in Oil and Energy South Africa (WOESA)

Presentation to the Regional workshop on

Mainstreaming Gender in Infrastructure Projects

22 March 2011, Addis Abeba Ethiopia

Jacqueline Williams:

Chairperson WOESA Investment Holdings

Presentation Outline

WOESA as vehicle for gender mainstreaming

WOESA Group of Companies

o Origin and mandate

o WOESA Section 21 (not for profit)

o WOESA Investments

o WOESA Investment Holdings

Opportunities and Challenges

Infrastructure projects

o Bethlehem Hydro Project

What WOESA brings to gender mainstreaming

Lessons to be learned for gender mainstreaming

WOESA as vehicle for gender

mainstreaming

South African policy on gender

mainstreaming since 1994

Statutory vehicles for gender

mainstreaming

Sectoral responses from women

WOESA as vehicle for gender

mainstreaming in oil and energy sector

WOESA’s involvement in infrastructural

projects

WOESA Origins

WOESA was established in 2002 with support

from the then DME and the Minister of Minerals

and Energy, now DoE

WOESA was created as a not for profit company

In time, with the view of ensuring financial

sustainability, it established an investment

company

Later creating WOESA Investment Holdings with

the view of creating a BB women’s company

WOESA

section 21

WOESA Investments

(Pty) Ltd

WOESA members

1200 Individual

Shareholders

WOESA

Investment Holdings Ltd

WOESA Group of Companies

24% 76%

100%

WOESA’s Mandate

WOESA’s mandate is to facilitate and promote

business opportunities for and to enhance the

participation of South African women in the oil and

energy sector by:

oFacilitating broad involvement of women in

the energy sector

o Interfacing with all relevant stakeholders, in

order to foster a conducive environment for

the empowerment of women

oCreating a platform and network for women in

the oil and energy sector

WOESA (not for profit)

Established 2002

Presently Nearly 300 members

o Members are women-owned companies country-wide (oil,

energy and other sectors)

WOESA provides training courses for women and

access to business opportunities

WOESA has a close relationship with the DoE and

SAPIA (South African Petroleum Industry Association)

WOESA is funded by contributions from member

companies and some sector corporate

o 20% of dividends earned by WOESA Investments will

contribute to funding WOESA Section 21 (not for profit)

Membership

Growth in number of women owned

member companies

o End of 2003: 60

o End of 2005: 105

o End of 2008: 272

o End 2010 300

Professional Women in Energy Forum

Corporate members: 7 (oil companies)

Benefits to Members

Training:

o Access to oil and energy sector training by

MEETI (Mineral and Energy Ed, and Training)

o Financial workshops held in centres

throughout the country

Awareness raising:

o Petroleum value chain workshops

o Renewable energy workshops

o Exposure trips to refineries and power

stations

Benefits to Members cont.

Networking:

– Facilitating opportunities through national and

international conferences

Possibility of using the WOESA brand identity:

– Now ready to capitalize on this (business

opportunities)

Facilitating opportunities:

– To participate in businesses in the sector as

individual companies

– To participate with other member companies

– To participate through being shareholders of

WOESA Investment Holdings

WOESA Investments

Established in 2005

o To participate in investment activities in order to ensure

long-term financial sustainability of WOESA S21 (not for

profit)

Navigated through five difficult years to assist

women’s participation in the sector

CEO appointed in June 2007; hands-on

involvement by board members

Try to have good working relationship with funding

institutions – DBSA, Central Energy Fund, NEF

No current shareholding in major oil companies

o Sectoral transactions completed before WOESA

Investments was established

WOESA Investment Holdings

Established 2006

To secure funding from individual members as

investors in WOESA Investments

Owns 100% of WOESA Investments

Approx. 1200 shareholders, mostly

shareholders in WOESA member companies

Max. individual holding 5%, range R1,000 to

R1m

Black ownership 90%

Black female ownership 85%

Group Opportunities

Inyosi

o Held directly by WOESA S21

o Dividend from March 2011

Greif

o 6.7% of BEE 30% of packaging company

o Transaction completed

o Transaction size R 180 mill

Bethlehem Hydroo 37% of hydro-electric project

o Transaction completed

o Project size R 110 mill

Group Opportunities cont.

Sasol Inzalo Schemeo Will only get dividend in ± 7 years time

Smile Communications SA – 5%

Petrolineo > 8.3% of petroleum products pipeline

o Construction license awarded

o Development finance approved

o Project size ± R 4.6 bill

o Many stumbling blocks even after 7 years !!!!

Oil and product trading

A number of other early stage opportunities

Challenges WOESA (not for profit)

Raising finance for operating costs and to

maintain the office and interact with

members and stakeholders

Inadequate backing from government and

public sector institutions

Muted/erratic support by energy sector

companies

Retain the interest and enthusiasm of board

members given that they have their own

business involvement and receive no board

fees and carry their own costs for WOESA

activities

Challenges WOESA (not for profit) cont.

Offer relevant and practical training to women in

order to enable/empower them to establish their own

businesses in the energy sector

The dichotomy of the need for training and capacity

vs the need to earn a living

Many rural women find it difficult to attend courses

because of the travelling and accommodation costs

associated with attending training at a central venue

Challenges WOESA (WIH)

Seed funding to run the office until such time as

investments deliver cash flow some of which can be

channeled to overheads

Access resources (Funder belligerent to women)

– Women’s inability to access necessary funding, skills and

resources to give them edge in the sector

– Require administrative staff and investment professionals to

plan, negotiate and oversee investments

Administration associated with >1000 shareholders

– Maintaining records and interacting with shareholders

Unrealistic expectations from shareholders for

dividends in the short/medium term

Challenges WOESA (WIH) cont.

The time consuming business of following up leads and

identifying the good opportunities amongst the large

number of ideas and projects

Attract opportunities that give immediate cash flows

– To acquire an established business which can generate

positive cash flows

The capital intensity and long lead times associated

with energy projects which makes it difficult for a small

investment company to be taken seriously

Attracting and retaining big opportunities

Bethlehem Hydro: The Opportunity

The first green fields new Hydro project in South

Africa since 1980’s

– Project consists of two parts (7 Megawatt). Construction on

first unit started in 2007.

– 2009 first unit commissioned – 3 MW Sol Plaatjie plant and

– 2010 second unit commissioned – 4 MW Merino plant, both

on the As river in the Free State Province

DME encouraged the developer to invite WOESA to

participate as BEE group

WOESA formed consortium with some member

companies:

– HYDROWSA – owns 37.7% of project

– WOESA owning an effective 15.3% of the whole project

Bethlehem Hydro: The Opportunity Cont.

There has been huge cost overruns

o Because especially of the price of steel and cement,

o But because of the increase in the price of electricity in the last

two years and more increases in the next two years, the

economics of the project have improved

Because of this exposure WOESA will be able to

participate in three more projects with the same

developer

o If WOESA gets funding in time

Challenges Bethlehem Hydro Project

Our operating expenses during the project planning

and development phase

o The long lead time requires extensive upfront input

Raising finance for the project

o Frustrating interactions and slow decision making by the

project funders (staff turnover, etc)

Being regarded as junior partners by our fellow

shareholders

o Because of being women or because they doubted our

capacity to deal with such a project

Challenges Bethlehem Hydro Project cont.

Challenges in terms of the withdrawal of

CEF from the project when it was already

at an advanced stage

o CEF ensured that we retain our participation in

the project

Maintaining good governance ; dealing

with a consortium which included a

number of companies

The long lead time before the project

delivers positive cash flow

What WOESA brings to gender

mainstreaming

Broad based empowerment credentials

o> 90% black owned

o> 95% female owned

o± 85% black women owned

oGeographic spread of shareholders

oUrban and rural shareholders

Country-wide infrastructure

oRegional representatives in 8 provinces

oParticularly strong in Gauteng, KZN, Eastern

Cape, Western Cape, Mpumalanga

What WOESA brings to gender

mainstreaming cont.

Energy sector focus

o Oil and Gas industry value chain

o Suppliers and customers of the oil /

petrochemicals industry

o Other energy sectors

Active involvement of women in the

business

What WOESA brings to gender

mainstreaming cont.

Business credentials of directors

– Oil industry experience to CEO level

– Diversified experience

– Involvement with government in energy

related policy making teams

– Senior financial roles in private sector and

government

– Work experience with parastatals

– International corporate experience –

Netherlands, Malaysia, Mozambique, USA,

etc

Areas where WOESA needs support

Seed Funding to assist the WOESA

with

– Projects which will facilitate a steady

Income / dividend flow

– Access the necessary skills and

resources to give them edge in the

sector

– In attracting and retaining big

opportunities, like Petroline.

– To attract opportunities that give

immediate cash flows

Immediate areas of support to the

WOESA group of companies

Seed Funding for WOESA Investment

Holdings

o Will assist the WOESA admin costs

Financing of projects at favorable terms

Access or secondment of experienced

professionals and Admin staff to WIH and

WOESA

Providing office space and admin overheads

Lessons to be learned for mainstreaming

gender in infrastructure projects

There needs to be both government and

industry commitment to women’s

empowerment

Gender Mainstreaming is a national

responsibility

o It is unsustainable if it is a women’s challenge

only, it is a national imperative

o It must be budgeted for by both public and

private organisations

Lessons to be learned for mainstreaming

gender in infrastructure projects cont.

Women have to organise themselves

nationally in order to leverage political

and social will

o This process should not just be financed by

women only

It does not happen by itself, it must be

planned

There needs to be a Women’s fund for

each sector which looks at capacity

building and access to finance

Questions

???

Thank You

Contact details

Office: Isle of Houghton

Wilds View Building, Level 1

Corner Boundary & Carse O’Gowrie

Houghton, Johannesburg 2146 SA

+27-11-880 7479

Email: info@woesa.com

Website: www.woesa.com

Contact: Khumo Ntlha, CEO