TotalEnergies recently announced it had discovered oil at the Venus well, while Shell reported finding oil at the Graff well in the Orange River Basin offshore Namibia.
Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas is looking for another funding partner for the Osprey prospect’s drilling programme in the waters off Namibia, while Global Petroleum’s Welwitschia Deep prospect, with an estimated 50% prospective resource volume of about 670 million barrels of oil, is also expected to be drilled in the next 15 to 18 months.
The African Energy Chamber compiled a report that analyses the continent’s expansion of oil and gas.
The report also looks at the geopolitics shaping this growth.
The report was released in South Africa last month during the Africa Energy Week in Cape Town.
It says offshore and onshore projects in Namibia, Mauritania, Senegal, South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania and other potential oil-producing countries could produce 8% of the continent’s oil and gas output between 2026 and 2030.
The volumes would, however, increase from 2031 to 2040, with cumulative oil volumes expected to average 2,5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd).
The report further says oil exploration companies drilled 860 wells in 2021, and 895 wells could be drilled on the continent by the end of this year.
Compared to the past decade, the current number of wells has declined due to Covid-19 and other economic factors, such as the fall in oil prices.
Other factors were the civil war in Libya, and reduced onshore activity in Egypt.
In 2012, for example, Africa saw 1360 wells drilled. Between 2012 and 2014, some 1 430 wells were dug.
This number fell to 1 085 in 2015.
The most significant decline in the number of wells was in 2016, when just 955 wells were dug.
With Covid-19 besieging the world, Africa could afford just 815 wells in 2020.
Offshore drilling is expected to stay relatively flat at about 175 drilled per annum from 2023 to 2025, while the onshore drilling well count is expected to increase from about 745 wells in 2023 to 820 in 2025.
“The expected breakdown of the estimated investments towards 2025 derived from contingent projects, or projects yet to make an investment decision per development concept, suggests that onshore investments constitute the single greatest category, with investments reaching almost US$11 billion across the period from 2022 to 2025,” the report says.
The report further says African countries have issued 18 oil-mining licences for exploration in Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea Bissau and the Guinea Conakry Basin.
In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.
The Namibian uses AI tools to assist with improved quality, accuracy and efficiency, while maintaining editorial oversight and journalistic integrity.
Stay informed with The Namibian – your source for credible journalism. Get in-depth reporting and opinions for
only N$85 a month. Invest in journalism, invest in democracy –
Subscribe Now!
