Monthly Focus - Petroleum Africa · support the African Union and its programs (RCM-Africa) is all about up scaling efforts to get needed sustainable development results for the continent,

Monthly FocusReflections with Minister Diamantino Azeveda 20

Petroleum Africa March/April 2019 3

Local ImpactRemote Location Oil & Gas Medical Protocols 22

DEPARTMENTSAfrican PoliticsMoving OnMessage from the EditorAfrica’s Big FiveAfrica at LargeDownstream News

4568

1115

ON THE COVER

ContentsVol. 16 Issue 2March/April 2019

Market MoversAround the WorldPower & AlternativesFacts and FiguresConferencesAdvertisers’ Index

404346485050

Technology and SolutionsAfrica’s Offshore Excellence 24

Logbaba well La-107 flow testing36

Explorationoperationsoffshore WestAfrica

Downstream FocusLNG: Out of Africa 27

African FocusOverview: Algeria

Overview: Cameroon

30

36

New Products & ServicesWeatherford TR1P™ Wins “Spotlight on New Technology®” Award

Rigworld and ESP to Introduce Industry Courses in Senegal

Ultramodern CGG Facility for Reservoir Fluids and Gas Samples

Finnish-Russian Firm Tests Solution to Boost Production

Emerson/Repsol Cooperate on Advanced Cloud-Based Software

18

18

18

19

19

Sour

ce: V

icto

ria

Oil

and

Gas

BP operations in Algeria30

Sour

ce: B

P

20Minister Azeveda

Sour

ce: A

fric

a O

il &

Pow

er

Sour

ce: E

xcee

d E

nerg

y

Petroleum Africa March/April 20194

AFRICAN POLITICS

Bouteflika Resigns, Elections ScheduledFor the first time since 1999, AbdelazizBouteflika’s name will not be on the ballot forAlgeria’s presidential elections. The beleagueredpresident resigned before his mandate ended onApril 28. Bouteflika had been under siege formore than a month with mass protests and armypressure to end his two-decade long reign. Uponhearing the news of Bouteflika’s resignation,widespread celebrations across the country wereheld in the streets.

Algeria’s interim president, Abdelkader Bensalah,promised to organize free elections within 90days following weeks of protests that led to theresignation of leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika after20 years in power. The elections have beenpreliminarily set for July 4.

“I am committed to organizing elections,” saidBensalah, who has been re-elected as leader ofthe upper house since the early 2000s. The armywas aligned with the constitution as a pathwayout of the crisis, he added in his 16-minute speech.In a televised statement, Bensalah said he wouldconsult with the political class and civil society.While the interim president seems to be sayingthe right things, protestors are looking for anentirely different government. Bensalah is a long-time ally of Bouteflika and seen as part of theruling caste by the protesters.

Promises were made to “set a national andsovereign commission to secure fair elections,”but it is unclear as of yet if the protestors willtake a wait-and-see stance when it comes toBensalah’s promises. Demonstrators arecalling for radical change and not more of thesame of Algeria’s elite who include veterans ofthe war of independence against France,ruling party figures, businessmen, the army andlabor unions.

Comoros Elections “Highly Irregular”The electoral oversight body of the Comorosdeclared incumbent President Azali Assoumaniwinner of the country’s March presidentialelections with 60.8% of the vote. AhamadaMahamoudou was the runner up out of 12opposition candidates; he received 14.6% of theballot total.

As Assoumani won with over 50% of the vote,a run-off election will not be held, according tothe law of the island nation, despite international

observer bodies alleging the voting process washighly irregular and lacked credibility ortransparency. The observers were withorganizations that include the African Union andComesa, among others.

UN and AU Leaders Give Merits toJoint Development Mechanism for AfricaThe UN’s Regional Coordination Mechanism tosupport the African Union and its programs(RCM-Africa) is all about up scaling efforts toget needed sustainable development results forthe continent, leading figures from the UNsystem and the African Union have told mediapractitioners.

At a press conference on the side-lines of the52nd Session of ECA and the 20th Session ofRCM-Africa, UN Deputy Secretary-General –Amina J. Mohammed; ECA’s Executive Secretary– Vera Songwe; and the African Union’sCommissioner for Human Resources, Scienceand Technology – Sarah Anyang Agbor – spelledout the merits of this AU-UN synergy in the lightof dovetailing the UN’s mandates of peace andsecurity with sustainable development.

Ms. Mohammed said in the current context ofaddressing member States’ challenges andopportunities, RCM-Africa strove to capitalizeon the UN 2030 Agenda for sustainabledevelopment to support the seven importantaspirations of the of the African Union’s Agenda2063. “It is about how we can together leveragewhat governments should be doing to provideservices, draft-in their citizens as inclusive partof their agendas but also how we can leverageresources to enhance trade and foreign directinvestment flowing into the continent to moveforward with that agenda,” she said.

“Practically, RCM Africa is about the UN workingwith the African Union to try to get the 47% ofpeople of the continent still under poverty lineout of their situation, bring energy to the doorstepsof 500 million people without electricity andgarner the $60 billion needed to empower Africanwomen,” Ms. Songwe told the press.

She said it was meant to address the plight of the23 million people – a number which equates tothe population of Cote d’Ivoire – who are refugees,migrants or internally displaced in Africa, a majorarea of focus for both the AU Commission andthe Mechanism, this year. “The Africa we wantis within sight,” Ms. Songwe enthused, statingthat RCM-Africa was about efficiency andcoordinated effort of over 20 UN agencies tomobilize and deploy the $680 billion dollarsneeded to deliver on the SustainableDevelopment Goals.

Nigeria Election Challenge Filed, AgainFebruary presidential elections that pitted sittingpresident Muhammadu Buhari against primaryopponent, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar,are still being questionedfor their legitimacy.A c c o r d i n g t o t h eIndependent NationalElectoral Commission(INEC), Buhari received15.2 million votes (56%),against Atiku’s 11.3million (41%).

On March 18 Abubakar filed a petition with thepresidential election tribunal, challenging theresults in court due to “irregularities.” PresidentBuhari and his party immediately rejected theclaim. The tribunal has 180 days from the dateof filing to issue its ruling.

Cameroon: New Attackson Civilians by Troops, SeparatistsAccording to Human Rights Watch, governmentforces in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions havekilled scores of civilians, used indiscriminateforce, and torched hundreds of homes over thepast six months, Human Rights Watch said,“Armed separatists have assaulted and kidnappeddozens of people during the same period,executing at least two men, amid intensifyingviolence and growing calls for secession of theNorth-West and South-West region.”

The NGO statement went on to say that violencehas intensified since October 2018 as governmentforces have conducted large-scale securityoperations and separatists have carried out attacks.Cameroon’s government should investigateallegations of human rights violations and ensurethat civilians are protected during securityoperations. Separatist leaders should immediatelydirect their fighters and followers to halt allhuman rights abuses and to stop interfering withchildren’s education.

“Cameroon’s authorities have an obligation torespond lawfully and to protect people’s rightsduring periods of violence,” said Lewis Mudge,Central Africa director at Human Rights Watch.“The government’s heavy-handed responsetargeting civilians is counterproductive and risksigniting more violence.”

Since October, at least 170 civilians have beenkilled in over 220 incidents in the North-Westand South-West regions, according to mediareports and Human Rights Watch research. Giventhe ongoing clashes and the difficulty of collectinginformation from remote areas, the number ofcivilian deaths is most likely higher.

Abdelaziz Bouteflika Abdelkader Bensalah

Sour

ce: U

N

Sour

ce: G

over

nmen

tof

Nig

eria

Muhammadu Buhari

MOVING ON

The Supervisory Board of Rolls-Royce PowerSystems AG agreed on extending the contractsof President and CEO Andreas Schellalongside CFO and HR Director Marcus A.Wassenberg. Both contracts were extended untilDecember 2022.

Tullow Oil appointed Sheila Khama andGenevieve Sangudi as non-executive directorswith effect from April 26 following the firm’sAnnual General Meeting. Kharman is a policyadvisor to the World Bank and Sangudi is MDof the South Africa based Carlyle Group.Separately, after almost nine years on the board,Tutu Agyare will resign as a non-executivedirector. Following Tutu’s retirement, JeremyWilson will chair the Remuneration Committee.

ADES International Holding appointed HatemSoliman as a non-executive director withimmediate effect. Soliman brings a wealth ofinternational industry experience, having spent36 years with Schlumberger.

Victoria Oil & Gas revealed that Kevin Foo isretiring as director and executive chairman. RogerKennedy, currently senior non-executive director,will assume the role of executive chairman. Twoadditional independent non-executive directorswill be appointed to the board.

Kenneth Bhalla has been promoted to CTO ofStress Engineering Services, Inc. (SES). Priorto his promotion, Bhalla led SES’ drilling,completion and intervention systems sub-practice.

International SOS appointed Anneline Booyse-Mofokeng to the role of security director forAfrica. Booyse-Mofokeng is an accomplishedsecurity professional, with previous security rolesincluding at the Bill and Melinda GatesFoundation, World Bank, Eskom ElectoralInstitute of Southern Africa South (EISA) andthe Board of Healthcare Founders.

Billy Rogers was named as the new president ofHENDERSON’s Drilling Products division.Rogers brings more than 40 years of oilfield

experience to his new role, previously workingfor Nabors, Atwood Oceanics, and Roberds-Johnson Industries in various capacities beforefounding and serving as president of HP PipingSolutions, acquired by HENDERSON in 2018.

BCCK Holding Company (BCCK) appointedLucia Cheung as proposal manager. Cheung hasmore than 20 years of engineering, businessdevelopment, finance and project executionexperience across the oil and gas, chemicals,pharmaceutical and manufacturing industries.Her experience was gained in the US, UAE,Kuwait, Indonesia and Singapore.

Xodus Group has expanded its decommissioningoffering with the appointment of its first welldecommissioning manager, Gavin Bell. Bell joinsthe company from Repsol Sinopec ResourcesUK where he led a number of P&A projectsthrough early planning phases including rigoption selection and the development of P&Acost models.

Khaled Jarrar was appointed group CFO ofDrake & Scull International PJSC (DSI). Thecompany also appointed Mohamed Ghanem asits chief legal officer and Mike Grant as chiefrestructuring officer.

ExxonMobil Chemical’s John Verity has electedto retire from the company after 38 years ofservice. The board of directors has appointedKaren McKee, senior VP for basic chemicalintegration and growth to fill Verity’s position.The appointment of McKee is effective fromApril 1.

To include a corporate personnel announcement in Moving On, write to [email protected]. Preference will be given to Africa-specific appointments and to thosecompanies who have interests within the continent; all others will be included on a space available basis.

Reactive Downhole Toolsnamed Niall Urquhart asVP Eastern Hemisphere,to support its growth plansfor the region. Urquharthas 10 years of experiencein the oil and gas sector,including as projectengineer for Baker

Hughes, and regional sales manager – MiddleEast for Interwell.

Niall Urquhart

Eranove announced thatthe board of directors forits subsidiary, IvorianElectricity Company(CIE), named AhmadouBakayoko as directorgeneral of CIE. Theappointment is effectiveApril 15. He succeeds

Dominique Kakou, who will becomechairman of the board of directors at the nextgeneral shareholders meeting.

Ahmadou Bakayoko

S e y c h e l l e s ’ s e c o n dpresident France AlbertRené, who took power ina 1977 coup and went onto shape politics fordecades, died at the age of83 on February 26. Renéwas n icknamed the“kingmaker” for the

influence he wielded on the island nation.René was admitted to hospital with anundisclosed illness on February 12.

France Albert René

Kosmos Energy’s chief exploration officerand founding partner, Brian F. Maxted hasretired from the company. Maxted’s retirementwas effective February 15, although he willremain on the board to serve as special advisoron exploration. The role vacated by Maxtedwas filled by Tracey Henderson who joinedKosmos in 2004.

Brian F. Maxted Tracey Henderson

Winch Energy appointedrespected African energyexpert Olga Johnson asan Ambassador for Africa.Johnson is a true expert inher field, holding theposition of executivedirector of Energies Pourl’Afrique, created by

Jean-Louis Borloo, former French Ministerof State, which aims to provide affordableaccess to energy for all Africans and is alsospecial advisor for Africa for FoundationEnergies pour le Monde (FONDEM). Inaddition, she is an ambassador for the well-known Women in Africa Initiative, aninternational platform dedicated to theeconomic development and support of leadingand high potential African women.

Olga Johnson

Sasol appointed OvidioJosé Sarmen to Rodolfoas country director forMozambique. Rodolfocomes to Sasol with solidexperience in the oil andgas industry starting hisca ree r wi th BP i nMozambique.Ovidio José Sarmen

Foster Marketing namedAnna Scordos-Brooke asits director of publicrelations. Prior to herpromotion, Scordos-Brooke served as FosterM a r k e t i n g ’s p u b l i crelations account executivebased in the U.K. Before

joining Foster Marketing in 2013, she held arange of editor positions with globalpublications including Oilfield Technology,LNG Indus t ry , World Coa l andEnergyGlobal.com.

Anna Scordos-Brooke

www.petroleumafrica.com

Petroleum Africa January/February 20186

CONTACT US

MESSAGEF R O M T H E E D I T O R

Petroleum Africa Magazine is aTexas, United States-registered company.PO Box 1571 Montgomery, TX 77356

According to some of the research and analysis consultancies, merger andacquisition deal flow over 2018 fell flat, and were heavily focused on low-risktransactions that offered consolidation and optimization. A few merger andacquisition deals have been announced or concluded over the first few monthsof 2019, leading one to wonder if this trend will continue throughout the year orif we are looking at a repeat of 2018.

Oil prices will remain a factor. After a reasonable recovery over 2018 based inpart on efforts by an OPEC-led pact with other non-OPEC producers to curtailproduction, prices began their unwelcome plummet on October 11 from the $73range to bottom out at $42.53 per barrel in December. Since then we have seena gradual recovery reaching a high of $65.89 on April 24. With summer demandgoing up in the northern hemisphere, stability issues in Libya and Venezuela, andlooming US sanctions on Iran, the price could remain propped up.

So far, on the upstream end, we have seen African Petroleum Corp. enter intoan agreement to combine with PetroNor E&P Ltd. for an all-share considerationthis quarter. We also saw Soco International conclude its $215 million deal topick up Egypt-focused producer Merlon Petroleum, announced in September.As we were getting ready to go to press, a major acquisition deal was announcedthat, if it goes through, would be one of the most exciting we have seen in quitea while. Chevron Corp announced its intention to acquire Anadarko PetroleumCorp. at a mega-billion price tag. If successful, the deal could have implicationsfor Algeria, Ghana, Mozambique, and South Africa where APC holds someexciting assets. Other upstream deals announced or pondered in Q1 were oftenfocused on companies with assets in the US Permian Basin (Anadarko included).

Meanwhile, Nigeria asset disposals offer opportunity for those companies lookingfor producing assets rather than full acquisitions. Reports have ExxonMobil intalks to sell off some of its assets in the country. According to a Reuters report,citing industry and banking sources, the US firm has recently held talks on thesale of a suite of oil and gas fields as it turns its focus to new developments inU.S. shale and Guyana. The potential disposals are expected to include stakesin onshore and offshore fields and could raise up to $3 billion. Shell announcedin Q3 2019 it would be looking to pare down its Nigerian onshore and near shoreassets to focus further offshore.

Between magazine issues, we’ll continue to keep you up-to-date on the latestdevelopments from the M&A scene on www.petroleumafrica.com!

Algeria and Cameroon, both exciting and busy hydrocarbon producers, featurein the African Focus section, be sure to read the latest updates! Angola is makingsome changes, don’t miss our interview with H.E. Minister Diamantino Azevedain Monthly Focus. Each year we take a look at the LNG industry and hone-in onAfrica’s standing; all of the past year’s developments can be found in theDownstream Focus section. As always, your comments and suggestions arewelcome and can be sent to [email protected].

Dianne SutherlandChief Editor

Advertising RepresentativesAustria, Germany, SwitzerlandEisenacher MedienErhardt EisenacherTel: +49 0228 2499 [email protected]

GhanaResearch Development &Financial Consultants Ltd.Tel: +233 302 767 [email protected]

ItalyEdiconsult InternazionaleAnna De BortoliTel: +39 02 477 100 [email protected]

South AfricaAntonette BentingTel: +27 82 414 [email protected]

North AmericaFarrah YounesTel/Fax: +1 713 867 [email protected]

Rest of Africa/Middle EastFarrah YounesTel: +254 20 243 [email protected]

United KingdomJina SellersTel: +1 713 867 [email protected]

Global InquiriesJina SellersTel: +1 713 867 [email protected]

Deputy EditorJennifer [email protected]

Senior CorrespondentMark Pabst

Operations ManagerAlan Younes

Art DirectorMario Saad

Client Relations andDigital Media ManagerFrederick Caccamo Jr.

Circulation ManagerSilvia Rafaat

Distribution CoordinatorAmira A.Wahab

Database CoordinatorOlabisi Ijeh

Senior AccountantSaid Adly

Advertising/SalesJina Sellers

IT and Social MediaFarrah Younes

Administrative AssistantDalia Abd El-Wahab

Africa Headquarters10G Ahmed Abd El-Aziz St.,New Maadi, Cairo, EgyptTel/Fax: +2 02 2517 [email protected]

[email protected] visit www.petroleumafrica.com



AFRICA BIG F IVE

Petrofac Wins $1 Billion Ain Tsila JobPetrofac won a $1 billion contract in Algeria forthe Ain Tsila Development Project. The contractcomes from the joint operating group set up bySonatrach, Petroceltic, and Enel; togetherGroupment Isarene.

Located around 1,100 kms south-east of Algiers,the Ain Tsila field will produce gas, LPG andcondensate, for the local Algerian market and forexport. Under the terms of the 42-month contract,the lump-sum EPC project scope of work includescommissioning, start-up and performance testing.E S Sathyanarayanan, group managing director,Engineering & Construction, commented: “I amdelighted we have the opportunity to be workingwith the Groupement Isarene partners to deliverthis strategically important project. This awardbuilds on Petrofac’s significant track record inAlgeria where we have been operatingsuccessfully for more than 20 years, with a strongrecord for project execution and the developmentof local capability. We are focused on deliveringan effective, safe solution that meets our highstandards and continues our commitment to thelocal energy sector.”

Besides working on the Ain Tsila, Petrofac isworking on Algeria’s Tinrhert Field DevelopmentProject as well as the Alrar and Reggane projectsthat came onstream last year.

Nour-1 Another Gas Discovery for EgyptAnother gas discovery was made in Egypt, addingto the country’s already significant natural gasresource totals. The discovery was made by Italianfirm ENI while drilling the Nour explorationprospect on the Nour North Sinai Concession inthe Eastern Mediterranean.

The Nour-1 New Field Wildcat (NFW) was drilledby the Scarabeo-9 semi-submersible drilling rigin a water depth of 295 meters, reaching a totaldepth of 5,914 meters. The well found 33 metersof g ross sands tone pay wi th goodpetrophysical properties and an estimated gascolumn of 90 meters in the Tineh formation ofOligocene age. The well has not been tested,although an intense and accurate data acquisitionhas been carried out.

In the concession, which is in participation withEGAS, ENI is the operator with a 40% stake, BPholds a 25% stake, Mubadala Petroleum a 20%stake while Tharwa Petroleum Company claimsa 15% stake of the contractor’s share.

The JV operator will start the feasibility studiesto accelerate the exploitation of these new

resources leveraging the synergies with existingfacilities and infrastructures, after finalizing thediscovery evaluation.

WorleyParsons to AidSonatrach in Reaching its GoalsWorleyParsons signed a five-year frameworkagreement with Algeria’s state-run oil and gasfirm Sonatrach. Under the agreement, thecompany will provide project managementservices to develop its oil and gas productioncapacity over the next five years across a numberof key projects in the country.

Sonatrach previously announced its investmentstrategy program, which is largely centered onits natural resources. The company’s goal is tobecome the fifth largest oil company in theworld (SH2030).

Agogo-1 Adds AnotherOil Success to Block 15/06ENI knocked out another discovery in Angola onBlock 15/06, this time with the drilling of theAgogo exploration prospect. The discovery isestimated to contain between 450 and 650 millionbarrels of light oil in place with further upside.

The Agogo-1 NFW well, which has led to thediscovery, is located approximately 180 km offthe coast and about 20 km west from theN’Goma FPSO (West Hub). The well was drilledby the Poseidon drillship in a water depth of1,636 meters and reached a total depth of4,450 meters.

Agogo-1 NFW proved a single oil column ofabout 203 meters with 120 meters of net pay ofhigh-quality oil (31° API) contained in a sub saltdiapirs setting in Lower Miocene sandstoneswith excellent petrophysical properties. The dataacquired in Agogo-1 NFW indicate aproduction capacity of more than 20,000 barrelsof oil per day.

Agogo is the third discovery of commercial naturesince the Block 15/06 consortium decided tolaunch a new exploration campaign in 2018,leading to the discoveries of Kalimbaand Afoxé.

The discovery opens new opportunities for oilexploration below salt diapirs in the north-westpart of the prolific Block 15/06, thus creatingnew chances for unlocking additional potentialvalue. The mapping and the drilling of Agogoprospect has been possible through the use ofENI’s advanced and sophisticated proprietaryseismic imaging technologies.

The Block 15/06 JV, comprised of ENI (operator,with a 36.8421% stake), Sonangol P&P(36.8421%) and SSI Fifteen Limited (26.3158%),will work to appraise the discovery and start thestudies to fast track its development.

First Angola Bound DrillshipLaunched for SonadrillSonangol and Seadrill saw the first of twodrillships launched in Busan, South Korea, theLibongos drillship. The vessel is the first of twothat will start operations in H1.

Libongos and its sister ship Quenguelas, whichis currently in the final building phase, will beoperated by Seadrill as part of the Sonadrill JVbetween Sonangol and Seadrill. The drillships,built at the Daewoo Shipbuilding MarineEngineering (DSME) shipyard, are seventhgeneration high spec ultra-deepwater drillships.Libongos was christened and launched bySonangol CEO, Carlos Saturnino; DSME CEO,Sung Leep Jung; and Angola’s First Lady AnaDias Lourenço, on March 21.

“This project is another milestone in relaunchingthe Angolan oil industry, in the quest to increaseproduction and national reserves. It also increasesthe integrated service offerings of the primarychain, diminishing the dependency on externalavailability in meeting the exploration programmilestones,” Saturnino said at the event.

Hassi Bir RekaizDevelopment in the WorksAlgeria’s Hassi Bir Rekaiz is seeing somedrilling over the coming months. PTT Exploration& Production (PTTEP) plans to drill an estimated14 wells as it launches the initial developmenton the concession’s cluster of oil fields ineastern Algeria.

PTTEP said it began working on the developmentafter receiving approval in 2018 for a 25-yearproduction period.

The company expects to see first production in2021 at an initial rate of 10,000-13,000 bpd. Overthe next four years the field should reachpeak production of 50,000-60,000 bpd once the

Sour

ce: D

SME



construction of a central facility and the drillingof a planned 139 wells are complete.

Field names are Semhari, Semhari East, MouiaAissa, Rhourde Abadje, Oglat El Bachir, SahaneBagas, Rhourde Rhorfat, Rhourde Terfaia, BouGoufa, and Rhourd Ez Zita.

Total Brings Kaombo Sul On ProductionTotal started production on the Kaombo Sul fieldon Angola’s Block 32. The crude oil is beingproduced through the block’s second FPSOKaombo Sul. Eight months after its sister shipKaombo Norte came on stream, Kaombo Sul willadd 115,000 bpd and bring the overall productioncapacity to 230,000 bpd, equivalent to 15% ofthe country’s production. The associated gas fromKaombo Sul will be exported to the Angola LNGplant, as part of the Group’s commitment to stoproutine flaring.

“Leveraging the experience of Kaombo Norte,Kaombo Sul started up in the best possibleconditions. This second FPSO stands out as anexcellent example of standardization to reducecosts and improve efficiency. Its start-up willcontribute to the Group’s cash flow and productiongrowth in 2019 and beyond,” stated ArnaudBreuillac, President Exploration & Production atTotal. “This achievement demonstrates once againTotal’s commitment to Angola, as the Groupdevelops short cycle projects on Block 17 inparallel and prepares to drill an exploration wellon Block 48.”

The full Kaombo development consists of sixfields spread over an area of 800 sq km. Gengibre,Gindungo and Caril were connected to theKaombo Norte FPSO which started up last year,while the three fields, Mostarda, Canela andLouro, have now been connected to KaomboSul FPSO.

The project comprises a large subsea systemincluding 59 wells (with over 60% of them alreadydrilled), and two FPSO units which wereconverted from Very Large Crude Carriers.

Kaombo also sets a new record in terms of localcontent in Angola as 20% of the 110 millionproject hours were worked locally.

SPDC Plans $15 Billion InvestmentRoyal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary, ShellPetroleum Development Co. (SPDC), plans toinvest about $15 billion in oil and gas projects inthe West African country over the next five years,ThisDay reported, citing the managing directorof the unit, Nosa Okunbor.

The projects earmarked for investment will includedeep offshore, shallow water, swamp and landterrain, the news outlet reported.

In addition, SPDC has also taken the finalinvestment decision on the 300 Mmcf/dAssa North Ohaji gas project, which isexpected to generate 1,200 MW of power,said Okunbor.

Sirius Reaches Targeted Depth on OroroSirius Petroleum has reached target depth on itscurrent drilling operations offshore Nigeria onthe Ororo field using the Adriatic-1 drilling rig.The company is awaiting a further update fromShelf Drilling regarding the release of theAdriatic-1, which is currently stationed in theadjacent license to the Ororo field.

In order to retain its current license, the companyis required to bring the Ororo field intoproduction on or before May 1. Sirius said thatgiven the approaching timeline, it has taken thedecision to seek a further extension to the termof the license from the Department of PetroleumResources, which has already been granted ontwo previous occasions.

ExxonMobil’s Algerian Entrance StallsAlgeria’s hopes of getting ExxonMobil involvedin exploring within its borders have taken a bitof a hit. Talks between the Algerian authoritiesand the US supermajor have stalled on the backof the North African country’s recent unrest inthe country.

The country has experienced ongoing protestsover President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s bid for fiveterms in office. While Bouteflika bowed topressure from the protestors, deciding to pull outof the election, his decision to postpone thoseelections and remain in office until new ones areset was very unpopular.

The stalling of talks between ExxonMobil andthe government is the first economic fallout fromthe anti-government protests. Sonatrach andExxonMobil had been in talks for months todevelop a field in the southwestern Ahnet Basin,the sources close to the discussions said, accordingto a Reuters report.

KCA Deutag Picks UpNew Algerian ContractKCA Deutag saw a slew of new contract awardscoming out of Africa, as well as several otherregions around the world. These contracts, witha combined value of approximately $54 million,are for drilling operations.

KCA’s African contract comes out of Algeria.The company won a new drilling contract for oneof Bentec’s fast moving 1500 hp Speed Rigswhich will commence in June. The rig will carryout a short-term plug and abandonment programin the North African country. The company didnot say who the drilling contract was with.

Y3-51 Shows Encouraging ResultsAGOCO, a subsidiary of Libya’s NOC, sawpromising results from its Y3-51 appraisal wellin the Sirte Basin. According to a statement onthe NOC website, the well has the potentialto flow at rates of 8,500 bpd of oil and1.82 Mmcf/d of gas.

The well is located north-east of the Nafoura oilfield. While the well was drilled in January 2018to a total depth of 11,300 ft, a thoroughtesting of the well was not conducted untilMarch 24.

Initial production testing from the Bahi Formationand Upper Cretaceous layer saw the well flowingat a rate of 2,860 bpd of oil and .54 Mmcf/d ofgas from the Bahi Formation and 5,635 bpd ofoil and 1.28 Mmcf/d of gas from the UpperCretaceous. The tested interval was between10,520 – 10,765 ft.

The Y3-51 well was drilled to delineate structureY to the north-west of discovery well Y1-51,drilled in 2000, with promising test results of3,892 bpd. This was followed by the Y2-51 in2003, however the results were not encouraging.AGOCO is currently drilling appraisal wellY4-51.

NOC and AGOCO are working on developingthese fields and increasing production. Fullexploration of structure Y is a strategic priority,as it is expected to add 38 million bpd of oil,

Sour

ce: T

otal

Sour

ce: B

ente

c


AFRICA BIG F IVE

and 12 Bcf of gas, with recoverable reserves of11 million barrels of oil, and 10 Bcf of gas.

Safeway Seagull Celebrates 10,000Safe Transfers for Bonga FPSO JobThe Van Aalst Group reported that as ofMarch 6 the unique Safeway motion compensatedoffshore access system completed over 10,000safe personnel transfers for Shell NigeriaExploration & Production Company (SNEPCo)during a maintenance campaign on board theBonga FPSO.

To perform this maintenance and inspectionproject of the FPSO, the unique 28-meter longwalk-to-work Seagull-type is installed on the95-meter long multifunctional subsea vesselOlympic Triton. Specifically for this Bonga-project, the DP2 diesel electric ROV supportvessel was chartered by Temile DevelopmentCompany, an indigenous shipping companyoperating in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

As both the Olympic Triton and the Bonga FPSOare vessels with individual movements in thewater, the innovative and advanced control systemof the Safeway Seagull was able to perform theShip-to-Ship W2W operations as the world’s firstsupplier without modifications or additionalcontrol units on the FPSO landing point.

The FPSO varies in draft due to its normaloperations. The Safeway Seagull’s standard 10-meter vertical height adjustment of the gangwayallowed the 10,000 workers and their tools to besafely transferred from the Olympic Triton to theBonga FPSO and vice versa at a spectacular pace,leading to an increase in operational efficiency.

According to the contract, the combination ofOlympic Triton and the SafeWay gangwaywill remain operational on the project untilfurther notice.

El Sisi ApprovesGas Market AmendmentsPresident Abdel Fattah El Sisi of Egypt, approvedamendments to the regulation of the gas marketactivities law. The amendments involve the part

of the law dealing with collecting fines due toviolations, according to Mubasher.

Collected fines will be directed to the publictreasury, instead of the Gas RegulatoryAuthority, as the authority gets sufficient moneyfrom other sources.

The amendments were made to ensuretransparency, as the regulatory authority wasresponsible for both issuing and collectingviolation fines.

NOC and ENI Sign MoUsLibya’s state-run oil and gas firm NOC, andItalian major ENI, signed two MoUs on March25. The first MoU concerned the establishmentof a steering committee to expedite gas productionat structures ‘A’ and ‘E’ within maritimeconcession MN 41 in the Sabratha Marine Basin.

The steering committee will oversee the timelyand transparent implementation of this project,in line with best-practice good governance, andwill work to alleviate difficulties facing projectimplementation. This important strategic projectwill provide gas to meet both local consumptionand export requirements. Once complete, projectcapacity from both structures will total 760 millioncubic feet of natural gas per day.

The second MoU agrees to jointly fund capacitybuilding programs for industrial security staff atNOC and Mellitah Oil and Gas Company, withworkshops focusing on risk assessment andmitigation, crisis management, and comprehensivefield inspection procedures.

During the signing ceremony, NOC chiefMustapha Sanalla commented: “ENI is one ofNOC’s strategic partners and one of the world’slargest oil and gas companies, renowned for itsexpertise and technological capabilities that weseek to bring to Libya. Our sector is the backboneof the national economy - we should preserve itfor future generations. We have to work ondeveloping the sector in order to increaseproduction and fuel development.”

SPDC Adds to Contractor Support FundOne of Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian units, ShellPetroleum Development Company of NigeriaLimited (SPDC), signed a contractor support fundof $200 million with the United Bank for Africa(UBA). Under the partnership agreement, thebank will provide loan facilities to the oilcompany’s local vendors and suppliers.

Shell’s contractor support fund provides supportfor contractors to finance projects for Shell

companies in Nigeria in line with the aspirationsof the Nigerian Content Act. Contractors andsuppliers who have a valid purchase order andmeet the bank’s risk assessment criteria will haveaccess to the fund. Potentially, this support fundwill boost their financial capacity and enablethem to improve their operations.

According to SPDC, “findings indicate that lackof access to capital hinders many Nigeriancompanies from competing for and executingcontracts effectively.” To this effect, the companyaims to increase participation of host communitiesin its value chain through the funding.

In 2016 Shell signed a $2.2 billion MoU withseven Nigerian lenders aimed at providing localvendors financial support. According to thecompany, about $1.5 billion worth of loans havesince been given to over 300 small and mediumsized businesses who either supply to Shell Nigeriaor serve as vendors to the company’s products.

South Disouq to See Production UptickEgypt will add to its production totals this yearwhen SDX Energy starts producing gas at theSouth Disouq concession. The company said thatit aims to see a gross output of between 50-60Mmcf/d by mid-2019.

In a statement on its website, SDX said theproduction from the South Disouq will be soldto state-run gas firm EGAS at a price of $2.85per 1,000 cubic feet.

The company is also looking to boost its grossproduction average rates from the Mesedaconcession, hoping to reach 4,000-4,200 bpdthis year.

Sonatrach Preparesfor Offshore CampaignSonatrach, Algeria’s state-owned oil and gascompany, in partnership with Total and ENI, isabout to launch an offshore drilling program. Thecompanies will be drilling on the eastern coastbetween Bejaia and Skikda.

A Reuters report cited Sonatrach’s Director forNew Resources, Youcef Khankar, as saying thatthe campaign will begin in H2. Khankar said that2D and 3D seismic data acquisition campaignsare currently underway. The initial results fromthe 2D seismic campaign suggest geologicalsimilarities between the east coast and Egypt’sZohr field.

The targeted region for this new drillingcampaign could contain several Tcm of naturalgas, officials said.

Sour

ce: O

lym

pic

Subs

ea


AFRICA AT LARGE

Gabon’s NOC Takes Stake in DussafuGabon’s state-run oil concern, Gabon OilCompany (GOC), signed an agreement with BWEnergy Gabon to acquire a 10% stake in theDussafu PSC. BW is the operator of the fieldwith a 91.67% participating stake. Panoro holdsthe remaining interest.

The transaction is subject to certain conditionsprecedent, including the approval of the Gabonesegovernment. It also involves payment by GOCof $28.5 million.

In addition to the state-run firm taking a stake,Tullow Oil has decided to exercise its back-inrights on the license. Once the agreement isapproved, BW’s stake will drop to 73.5%,Panoro’s falls to 7.5%, GOC’s to 9% and Tullowwill hold the remaining 10%.

Exceed Wins Guinea Bissau JobExceed won its first contract to be undertakenoffshore Guinea Bissau. The award came fromSvenska Petroleum Exploration AB and the projectwill comprise full well project managementservices to deliver a deep-water exploration well.The well is the first deep water well to be drilledoffshore Guinea Bissau.

Exceed’s workscope will include all front-endengineering planning, service procurementsupport, logistical set-up, HSE management(including systems permitting) and operationalexecution of the well.

Valued in the region of $4 million, the 12-monthcontract follows on from existing operations inthe region, begun during Q4 2018, which haveseen Exceed steer an operator through its maidenwell project offshore Gambia.

Qatar Petroleumto Join ENI Offshore MoroccoQatar Petroleum (QP) has entered into anotherdeal with ENI, this time to gain access to anexploration permit operated by ENI offshoreMorocco. QP is expected to soon enter the TarfayaOffshore Shallow I-XII exploration permit.

ENI, who controls a 75% stake in the license,has signed a lease-out agreement with QP to sell

30% of it. The Tarfaya Offshore permit includes12 exploration blocks off Morocco.

This agreement is subject to approval by theMoroccan authorities. In the event of validation,ENI will retain its operator status and hold a 45%stake. QP will hold 30% and state-run ONHYMwill hold a 25% stake.

New Petroleum Code for SenegalThe long-awaited Senegalese Petroleum Codehas just been enacted as Law No. 2019-03, datedFebruary 1, 2019. This statute, which replaces its1998 predecessor, sets out the general legalframework applicable to the carrying-out ofpetroleum operations in Senegal, from prospectingto marketing, from exploration to transport, fromdevelopment to storage, from exploitation to theliquefaction of natural gas.

Matters such as the mandatory State participationin the petroleum operations (via Petrosen, theSenegalese national oil company), the terms forthe award of blocks and the granting of thecorresponding mining rights, the rules onproduction sharing, the tax and customsframework to which oil companies and their sub-contractors / service providers are subject – andthe related incentives available to them – theenvironmental protection, transparency and localcontent standards, the foreign exchange guaranteesfrom which both the oil companies andthe sub-contractors may benefit, or thegrandfathering in of the existing petroleumcontracts are all addressed in and governed bythe Petroleum Code.

A number of provisions of this new statute areexpected to be the subject of developingregulations, including those setting out the generalterms for the award of blocks – competitivetendering procedure or direct consultation.

In tandem with the new Petroleum Code, a newstatute on Local Content in the HydrocarbonsIndustry was also enacted (Law No. 2019-04,dated February 1, 2019). Its declared aims are topromote the use of Senegalese goods and services,and to enhance the participation of the nationalworkforce, technology and capital in the entirevalue chain of the oil and gas industry.

3D Marine SeismicLaunched Offshore South AfricaAfrica Energy announced the start of a new 3Dmarine seismic acquisition program over theTotal-operated Paddavissie Fairway onBlock 11B/12B offshore South Africa. TheBlock 11B/12B joint venture partners have

contracted Polarcus to perform the 3D marineseismic acquisition program with the seismicvessel Polarcus Asima.

The seismic campaign will be used to better defineprospects within the block. The recent success atthe Brulpadda primary and secondary targetssignificantly de-risks other similar prospectsalready identified on the existing 2D seismic.“With this new 3D seismic program, thereservoir zones will be better imaged for theselection of future drilling locations. The 3Dseismic acquisition program will last until theend of April,” said Jan Maier, Africa Energy’sVP Exploration.

The Brulpadda discovery is located onBlock 11B/12B in the Outeniqua Basin 175 kmsoff the southern coast of South Africa. The blockcovers an area of 19,000 sq km with water depthsranging from 200 to 1,800 meters.

Africa Energy holds 49% of the shares in MainStreet 1549 Proprietary Limited, which has a10% participating interest in Block 11B/12B.

Sonangol and TotalTeam up in STP’s EEZFrench firm Total and Angola’s state-run oil andgas firm, Sonangol, will explore in the ExclusiveEconomic Zone (EEZ) of Sao Tome and Principe(STP) together. The two firms signed a PSA withthe island nation’s National Oil Agency (ANP)to explore and produce oil from Block 1 in theEEZ. Total has a 55% share in the license,Sonangol 30%, and the São Tomé and Principegovernment will hold the remaining 15%.

Block 1 is located in the deep waters of the EEZand covers an area of 3,292 sq km. Bothcompanies were obliged to pay a signature bonusof $2.5 million to gain access to the block. Thepartners will also spend $1 million over a four-year period on social projects in the country. Theagreement has a duration of 28 years and definesthe first eight years as an exploration phase.

“Oil production – which we all hope will happen– can bring with it a fundamental contribution towhat we do with the oil resources of this countrytowards an important progress for the people ofSão Tomé,” Olegário Tiny, head of ANP, wascited as saying in the Jornal de Angola.

In addition to Total and Sonangol joining forcesfor exploration in the EEZ, Total, on its ownsigned a new PSC for three blocks in the JointDevelopment Zone between Nigeria and STP.The new PSC grants Total the exclusive rights to

Sour

ce: E

xcee

d E

nerg

ywww.petroleumafrica.com


begin exploration activities in blocks 7, 8, and11. Having never been explored before, the blockscarry the potential of over 500 million barrels ofuntapped crude oil. According to reports, Totalwill invest more than $10 million in acquiring3D seismic data in search of oil and gas prospectsin the blocks.

Aker Submits Pecan PDOAker Energy Ghana, operator of the DeepwaterTano/Cape Three Points (DWT/CTP) blockoffshore Ghana, submitted an integrated plan ofdevelopment and operations (PDO) to Ghanaianauthorities on behalf of itself and partners Lukoil,GNPC, and Fueltrade. The PDO was submittedand presented to Ghana’s Minister of Energy,John Peter Amewu, on March 28.

The integrated PDO presents an overall plan fora phased development and production of theresources in the DWT/CTP contract area. Thephased development plan will start with thedevelopment of the Pecan field as a firmphase one, being the largest of several discoveriesin the area.

The PDO is subject to approval from relevantGhanaian authorities. Upon PDO approval, thepartners will initiate a process to make the FID.First oil from the Pecan field is estimated 35months after the FID is made.

The main Pecan field will be developed with aFPSO vessel and a subsea production system(SPS). The development of the Pecan field willcomprise of up to 26 subsea wells. It is plannedfor 14 advanced, horizontal oil producers and12 injectors with alternating water and gasinjection (WAG), and the use of multiphasepumps as artificial lift, to maximize oilproduction.

Total reserves from the Pecan field developmentare estimated to 334 million barrels of oil, andplateau production is estimated to 110,000 bpd.Production from the field is expected to last for

more than 25 years. The total capex to developthese reserves are estimated at $4.4 billion,excluding the charter rate for a leased FPSO.

The Pecan field center will have the flexibilityto tie-in subsequent development of resources.In addition to the reserves to be developed in thefirst phase, the area holds discovered contingentresources (2C) of 110-210 million barrels of oilequivalent (mmboe). Total resources in the areahave the potential to increase to between 600-1000 mmboe, provided successful appraisaldrilling activity. Data analysis and appraisaldrilling are currently ongoing at Pecan South andPecan South East.

Aminex and APTExtend Farm-out AgreementAminex revealed that all parties to the previouslyannounced Ruvuma farm-out agreement haveagreed to an extension to the longstop date toJuly 31. According to Aminex, it and ARAPetroleum Tanzania Limited (APT), havemade good progress on closing out theconditions precedent, including all JV partnerapprovals, and are actively engaged with thegovernment of Tanzania to close out theremaining conditions.

The principal conditions still to be met are theextension of the Mtwara License and approvalby the Tanzanian government of the transfer ofthe interest and operatorship. Aminex and APTcontinue to work closely with the Tanzanianauthorities to close out these conditions as soonas possible.

South Sudan Aiming for Production BoostSouth Sudan is targeting an over 50,000 bpdincrease in oil production in the coming months.According to the country’s Minister of Petroleum,Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, the government is targetingan increase of 70,000 bpd.

Aiding South Sudan in reaching its goal will bethe El Nar, El Toor, and Manga oil fields, whichwill resume production near the end of April.

While touring the oil fields, Gatkouth encouragedthe China Petroleum Engineering andConstruction Corp. to fast-track the rehabilitationprocess at the El-Nar and El-Toor fields in orderto meet the deadline.

Having set a goal to increase its oilproduction to 270,000 bpd by the end of 2019,this new target will see the country’s currentoutput rise from 160,000 bpd to 230,000 bpdin Q2.

DRC’s Open Blocks on OfferDuring the recent APPO (African PetroleumProducers Organization) Cape VII Conferenceand Exhibition, which took place in Malabo,Equatorial Guinea, the Minister of Hydrocarbonsfor the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC),John Kwet-Mwen Kwet, promoted the country’savailable acreage.

The DRC has called for tenders on 38 blocks intotal. Six of the 38 blocks are located in theCoastal Basin, with three of the six having beenrelinquished from past operators. There are 21exploration blocks on offer in the Central CuvetteBasin, three of those are currently held by state-run mining firm Comico. The remaining 11 blocksare located in the East Rift West Branch AfricanBasin’s Graben Tanganyika.

Targeted promotion of the blocks will be directedat large oil companies, with an emphasis onnational companies and APPO member countries.The Ministry has already participated in inter-regional discussions leading to the developmentof the agreements of unitization and is currentlyfocusing on promoting the round and encouragingoil companies to invest in upstream acreage inthe Congo.

3D Seismic Opportunityin Kenya’s Lamu BasinKenya’s Ministry of Petroleum has opened thebidding round for firms to tender their interest inconducting a 3D seismic survey over the shallowwater of the Lamu Basin “for purposes ofpromoting the area for petroleum exploration anddevelopment.”

The government’s offshore oil hunt signals arenewed drive for more discoveries following aseries of oil finds onshore in northern Kenya’sLokichar Basin made by Africa Oil Corp. andTullow Oil.

The Petroleum Ministry said in a notice that thecontracted bidding firms will be expected togather additional 3D seismic data on top of whatis currently available and process it to create dataprofiles. The firm will also be required to reprocessthe existing 3D data to derive additional dataproducts or volumes and offer support to theministry in planning and organizing a licensinground for the blocks, scheduled for 2021.

The winning bidder will also be required tointerpret historic and newly acquired 3D seismicdata and integrate it with other datasets, as wellas ensure skills exchange among Ministry andNational Oil staff on acquisition, processing and

AFRICA AT LARGESo

urce

: Ake

r E

nerg

y


interpretation of 3D data, including economicmodelling.

Lastly, the contracted firm will assist in activatingthe proposed upgrade of the existing NationalPetroleum Data Center system as a platform fordata marketing.

Kenya’s NOCK SeeksDrill Partner for KaiijadoState-run oil and gas firm, National Oil Corp.Kenya (NOCK), has turned its oil explorationfocus to Kaijado. NOCK plans to drill on the oilblock in the next two years. The company hopesto follow in the footsteps of Tullow and AfricaOil who have encountered oil resources estimatedat nearly a billion barrels in Blocks 10BB and13T in Turkana South.

The state-run firm, which has traditionallyconcentrated on its less-expensive downstreamoil business, is seeking a partner to inject cash indrilling in exchange for an undisclosed stake inBlock 14T.

The company said the results from itsinterpretation and integration of its 2D seismicdata in the block where it has been undertakinggeological and geoscientific studies with itspartner, Japan Oil and Gas Metals Company, havebeen positive.

Equa G LaunchesLicensing Round at CAPE VIIEquatorial Guinea launched 26 onshore andoffshore blocks during the presentation of itsopen licensing round at the APPO CAPE VII

Congress & Exhibition on March 4. Thelicensing round covers 24 offshore and twoonshore blocks.

Of the blocks on offer, two of the blocks hostexisting discoveries including Ophir Energy’sformer Block R, which encompasses the currentlystalled Fortuna FLNG project. The former Ophirblock is now on offer as Block EG-27.

The other block with an existing discovery isBlock EG-23. This block is located directlynorthwest of Marathon Oil’s Alba gas-condensatefield and adjacent to the maritime boundary withNigeria, it contains the Estaurolita gasdiscovery. The block also holds the Tsavarita oildiscovery and the non-commercial SodalitaWest oil find.

Six blocks – EG-07, 08, 12, 14, 25 and 30 –surrounding Bioko Island are up also on theauction block. Atlas Petroleum previouslyoperated EG-30 (known as Block J) while Starcused to operated EG-25 (formerly Block X), butthe companies have been forced to relinquishthese assets having done little or no work on themfor years. EG-07 holds the Langosta gas andcondensate discovery.

Other deep-water acreage available includesEG-05, 9, 10, 13, 15, 16, 17, and 22. Glencorepreviously operated EG-22 (then Block V) andEG-05. Blocks EG-03 and EG-04, previouslycontrolled by Elegance Power, are on offeronshore Rio Muni, while shallow water assetsEG-19, 26 and 29 (the former Block N) are alsobeing offered to the industry.

The former Corisco Deep block, also known asBlock K and now called EG-28, is also available.Four areas around Annobon Island, EA-01, 02,03 and 04 are also included in the tender.

Noble Approves Alen DevelopmentNoble Energy approved the Alen natural gasdevelopment offshore Equatorial Guinea. Naturalgas from the Alen field will be processed throughthe existing Alba Plant LPG processing plant andEG LNG’s liquefied natural gas production facilitylocated at Punta Europa on Bioko Island.

The Alen gas monetization project will utilizethe existing three high-capacity production wellson the platform, with minor modificationsnecessary to deliver sales gas from the platformto the Alba Plant and EG LNG facilities. A 24-inch pipeline capable of handling 950 millioncubic feet of natural gas equivalent per day(Mmcfe/d) will be constructed to transport allnatural gas processed through the Alen platformapprox. 70 kms to the onshore facilities.

Gross capital expenditures for the developmentare estimated to be $330 million. Capitalexpenditures for the project will be incurred in2019 and 2020, and these amounts havealready been included in Noble’s previouslycommunicated capital expenditure guidance.

The Alen field straddles Equatorial Guinea’sBlock O and Block I, in which Noble holds stakesof 95% and 5% respectively. It operates the Alenfield with a 45% interest. Other Block O interestowners include Glencore with 25% and GEPetrol

8,700+

NewsletterSubscribers

26,550+

LinkedInMembers

21,673

Averagemonthly page

views


WE HAVE YOUR MARKET

Write [email protected] to learn more about advertising opportunities


with the remaining 30%. Other Block Iinterestowners include Glencore with 23.75%, Atlas with27.55%, GEPetrol with 5% and Gunvor with theremaining 5.7%.

SeaBird Wins West Africa JobSeaBird Exploration was awarded two newcontracts, one of them for work offshore WestAfrica. The company received a letter of awardfor a niche 3D survey in West Africa. The totalvalue of the contract is estmated at approximately$6.5 million.

The survey is expected to commence in Q2, witha total duration of about 80 days. The total durationincludes associated vessel transit. Due to fleetpositioning and other contract opportunities,SeaBird will time-charter the Nordic Explorerfor this survey and will also bid the NordicExplorer for subsequent opportunities in H2 2019.In connection with the charter agreement,SeaBird will receive nine kilometers of IONDigi STREAMER from the owners of theNordic Explorer.

AAOG Updates TLP-103CAnglo African Oil & Gas (AAOG) updated theongoing analysis of its TLP-103C well locatedon the Tilapia field offshore the Republic ofCongo. The well targeted several horizons,including the Djeno, a prolific producer onneighboring licenses. Having encountered oilshows in all target horizons and additional areas,drilling operations at TLP-103C were completedon January 26.

After leaving TLP-103C to stabilize for a periodof 45 days, the well was opened to release pressurewhich was building in the tubing. On openingthe well, oil was produced. A sample of this oilwas collected and sent to the Congolese staterefinery for testing. The results of this test confirmthat the oil collected has an API of 43 and thatthe source of the oil is the Djeno reservoir.

This result therefore confirms the CPI calculationsmade by Schlumberger in January 2019 whichconcluded that TLP-103C had encountered oil inthe Djeno reservoir. The test also confirms thereservoir’s characteristics and indicates that thisoil has moved to surface under its own pressure.This new information will be included in the CPRthat is due to be published in the coming weeks.

AAOG also commented on funds owed to it bystate-run SNPC. The company revealed that SNPC

had agreed to pay monthly instalments,commencing during April of $600,000. Thesepayments will be applied in settlement of moniesowed by SNPC to AAOG. Before any upcomingpayment during said month, the sum owedamounts to approximately $9.5 million and mostlyrelates to SNPC’s share of the costs of drillingTLP-103C. SNPC has undertaken to send thecompany a signed payment schedule confirmingthe payment plan.

SNPC has also asked the company to re-opennegotiations to exchange a portion of SNPC’sequity interest in the Tilapia field in exchangefor the forgiveness of the remainder of the debtoutstanding once agreement is reached. SNPChas confirmed that it intends to continue makingthe monthly payments during the negotiation,and on that basis the company has agreed torestart negotiations.

Tlou Picks Up New CBM AcreageTlou Energy was awarded a new coal bedmethane prospecting license by the Departmentof Mines at the Ministry of Mineral Resources,Green Technology and Energy Security inBotswana. The new license, PL011/2019designated “Boomslang” is valid for an initialterm of three years.

The license area is approximately 1,000 sq kmand is situated adjacent to the company’s existinglicenses. The Boomslang area is located on-trendwith the encouraging results observed to date atthe Lesedi project and is considered to behighly prospective.

With initial development operations ongoing atthe Lesedi gas field, the award of the adjacentBoomslang area along with the Mamba areaprovides the company with further flexibilityand optionality.

Bashir Meets with Foreign OperatorsSudan’s oil minister, Isaac Adam Bashir, met withofficials from CNPC, ONGC, and Petronas toexplore the possibilities of joint cooperation inexploration. The government’s plan is to organizethese three companies in a consortium to exploreand develop new exploration blocks to increaseits oil supply.

At the meeting, Minister Bashir said he is fullyaware of the challenges faced by oil companiesoperating in Sudan and vowed to eliminate theseobstacles. Among the issues addressed by Bashir

was security, he did not say how this would beaddressed, however.

Chariot Picks UpNew Acreage in MoroccoChariot Oil & Gas picked up new acreage inMorocco with the award of a 75% interest andoperatorship of the Lixus Offshore License.Morocco’s ONHYM holds a 25% carried interestin the license.

The Lixus License covers an area ofapproximately 2,390 sq km, 30 km north ofChariot’s existing Moroccan acreage, with waterdepths ranging from the coastline to 850 meters.The area has been subject to earlier explorationwith legacy 3D seismic data covering about 1,425sq km and four exploration wells, including theAnchois gas discovery.

The Anchois discovery is in Tertiary-aged turbiditereservoirs that occur above a nappe emplacedduring the Alpine orogeny and the pay sands havea characteristic and anomalous seismicsignature. The company has identified five satelliteprospects to Anchois that have tie-back potential,three of which have been audited by NSAI, andChariot estimates that Anchois and the satellitesare holding remaining recoverable resources inexcess of 900 Bcf.

An additional five prospects have been identifiedin Lixus in similar geological settings as Anchoisbut currently without the appropriatelyconditioned 3D seismic data to confirmcomparable anomalous seismic signature, andthese prospects have gross mean prospectiveresources ranging from 66 Bcf to 330 Bcf, asestimated by the company. Seismic reprocessingwill be undertaken to reduce the risk for theseadditional prospects. NSAI will be preparing aCompetent Persons Report on these prospectsand on Anchois N and Anchois NW. Chariot isalso evaluating leads identified in the sectionbelow the Nappe which has the potential for giantscale prospective resources.

The initial license commitment, for which Chariotis fully funded, includes a technical program of3D seismic reprocessing and evaluation to accessthe additional exploration potential of Lixus.Chariot will also further evaluate the gas market,test development concepts through a feasibilitystudy and seek strategic partnerships andalliances to progress towards a development ofthe Anchois discovery.

AFRICA AT LARGE


DOWNSTREAM NEWS

Roll Group Wins TotalEthane Transport JobRoll Group won a contract to transport 24 modulesfor the Total Ethane cracker project in the US.The transport will cover seven single voyages,using both RollDock and BigRoll vessels. Thefirst voyage took place in March and the othertransports are scheduled to be undertaken betweenApril and August. The modules are currently inthe process of building in the UAE. Aftercompletion, Roll Group will roll the modules onboard of its vessels for transportation to PortArthur, Texas.

This is the first time that Roll Group will completethe transportation from the fabrication yard tothe job site of such a large project - including theland transport, according to Wiebe Broeksma,Roll Group Project Manager. “This was one ofthe reasons our client awarded the contract to us,since we have the ability to load and dischargethe majority of the cargo directly from the quayonto our RollDock vessels and vice versa, due tothe limited draft of our vessels.’’

Due to the size of the modules, the BigRollModule Carriers will be utilized on two voyages.Broeksma stated: “When unloading the BigRollvessels in Port Arthur, the intermediate transportwill be arranged by our sister company Roll-LiftUSA. A good example of our ‘Factory toFoundation’ ability.’’

The Roll Group project team has been involvedin the Total Ethane cracker project since the firstrequest for transportation in 2016. The projectteam is working together with Roll Group’sengineering department on all preparations toensure that the transport will be performed assafely and efficiently as possible. Total’s newcracker is scheduled to start up in 2020 and willhave an Ethylene production capacity of onemillion metric tons per year. It will be builtalongside Total’s Port Arthur refinery andTotal/BASF existing steam cracker.

Dangote Fertilizerand Chevron Sign Supply DealDangote Fertilizer entered into a long-termagreement with Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL)for the delivery of LNG from Chevron’s supplyportfolio to the fertilizer plant. The contract, underthe Gas Sale and Aggregation Agreement (GSAA)is part of Chevron’s gas obligation to the domesticmarket through the Gas Aggregation CompanyLimited (GACN).

Speaking at the signing ceremony in Lagos, GroupExecutive Director, Strategy, Capital Projects &Portfolio Development, DIL, Devakumar Edwin,commended the Managing Director of GACNfor his role in the new business relationshipbetween Dangote Fertilizer Limited and ChevronNigeria Limited.

He said the company is looking forward tohaving a long-term relationship with ChevronNigeria Limited as well as synergies in otherupstream and wider areas of operations in the oiland gas sector.

Chairman/Managing Director, CNL, JeffreyEwing said: “We are looking forward to workingwith Dangote Fertilizer and maintaining a goodrelationship with the company. This agreementis very important for the country and Chevron iscommitted to Nigeria’s economic development.”

Tanzania LNG Talks to Begin in AprilTanzania’s Energy Ministry says that talks withforeign operators on the development of itsplanned LNG facility should conclude inSeptember. Talks are expected to begin earlynext month.

Construction of an LNG export terminal nearhuge offshore natural gas discoveries in Tanzania’sdeepwater arena have been delayed by regulatoryissues for a few years.

“The government has officially decided to begintalks in early April for construction of the LNGproject,” Tanzania’s energy ministry said in astatement. “We are keen to implement this keyproject for the economy and we plan to ... concludethe talks in September this year.”

The talks are aimed at negotiating a hostgovernment agreement, which is seen as a crucialstep towards reaching a FID for the project. Thedecision to push talks forward was reachedfollowing a meeting on March 22 betweenthe African country’s energy minister, MedardKalemani, and Mette Ottoy, a senior VPat Equinor.

Equinor, alongside Royal Dutch Shell,ExxonMobil and Ophir Energy, plan to build a$30-billion onshore LNG plant.

FID on Nigeria’s Train 7 Expected in Q4The final investment decision (FID) on Train 7of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Co.’s LNGplant in Nigeria is expected to be taken by Q4 ofthis year. The company said that funds for theseventh train were being sourced in order toactualize the project.

Train 7 will grow NLNG’s production capacityfrom 22 mtpa to 30 mtpa, once completed.

MD of NLNG, Tony Attah, said that thecompany’s shareholders, which consist of ShellTotal, Nigerian Agip Oil Co., and NNPC, aresupportive of the Q4 FID.

Maire Tecnimont UnitsWin Port Harcourt Refinery RehabNNPC’s subsidiary, Port Harcourt Refining Co.Ltd. (PHRC), contracted subsidiaries of MaireTecnimont SPA to provide services as part of thefirst leg of a long-planned rehabilitationproject at the Port Harcourt refining complex.The complex includes a 60,000-bpd hydroskimming refinery and a 150,000 bpd full-conversion refinery.

The Maire Tecnimont SPA subsidiaries, TecnimontSPA and Tecnimont Nigeria Ltd. (TNL), willcarry out a complete integrity check andequipment inspections of the complex under the$50-million contract, Maire Tecnimont said.

Tecnimont and TNL’s scope of work under thePhase 1 Rehabilitation program will involve asix-month assessment at site, including relevantengineering and planning activities in preparationfor the second phase of the refinery modernizationproject, which will entail a full rehabilitation ofthe complex aimed at restoring the refiningcapacity to a minimum 90% of capacity utilizationaccording to the company.

Subject to successful completion of the integritycheck, Tecnimont and TNL, in collaborationwith an unidentified partner, also will executethe EPC for the project’s second phase, MaireTecnimont said.

Wood Wins USA Pipeline ProjectWood was awarded a $34 million contract fromRH energytrans LLC to construct 28 miles ofnew pipeline designed to carry natural gas fromPennsylvania to Ohio, through a competitivetender process. Wood’s scope also includes the

Sour

ce: R

oll G

roup



construction of the North Kingsville meter stationin Ashtabula County, Ohio.

The Risberg pipeline will connect toapproximately 32 miles of existing pipeline,originating in the Meadville, Pennsylvania area,extending in a northwest direction and terminatingat the North Kingsville Meter Station.Approximately 16 miles of new pipeline will beinstalled in Pennsylvania and 12 miles in Ohio.The project is underway and is expected to becompleted in summer 2019.

MHI Selected to SupplyTurbines for Rovuma LNGMitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) reachedan agreement with ExxonMobil and its co-venturepartners to supply H-100 gas turbine andcompressor packages for the Rovuma LNGPhase 1 project in Mozambique. Subject to FIDon the project, Mitsubishi Heavy IndustriesCompressor Corporation (MCO) will supply themain liquefaction compressors, and MitsubishiHitachi Power Systems, Ltd. (MHPS) will providedual-shaft, 120-MW H-100 gas turbines as themechanical drivers.

MHI said it is pleased to be selected for theRovuma LNG project, which plans to utilize theAir Products AP-X® process to build one of theworld’s largest natural gas liquefaction plants inMozambique’s remote northern area. Theproject plan is for two liquefied natural gas trains,each expected to produce at least 7.6 million tonsper annum.

$30 Billion Injectioninto African DownstreamAccording to the African Refiners and DistributorsAssociation (ARA), the significant achievementsin the current massive $30 billion investmentpush into the African downstream have been inlogistics, distribution, storage terminals, importfacilities and retail marketing. The investment ismost evident in countries such as Nigeria, SouthAfrica, Morocco and Angola.

Africa has been identified as arguably the onlyplace in the world where demand is steadilygrowing, at around 4% a year in gasoline and

diesel, because of the massive growth in thecontinent’s economies. The growth isattributable in part to a significant increase inpopulation, while efficiency, communications,and growth in GDP are leading to moreexpenditure on energy.

In the refining sector, that has faced manychallenges, there are green shoots ofinvestment; most notably the huge DangoteRefinery in Nigeria, which is progressing fast,with refining units soon to be installed. Oncompletion, this facility will massively alter theprofile of fuel supply in Africa, but it will, ineffect, just slow down the level of imports thatremain essential as the continent continues togrow. But Dangote in not the only investorin refining.

In Egypt, Africa’s largest refiner, EGPC outlinedits massive investment program for its eightrefineries in addition to the imminent start-up ofthe privately financed $4.5 billion project at theEgyptian Refining Company (ERC). Algeria, too,has been investing heavily in upgrading itsrefining system.

Keynote speaker at the conference, Minister ofEnergy of Cote d’Ivoire Abdourahmane Cissé,presented the €600 million new finance packagefor the SIR refinery in Abidjan and announcedthe planning for upgrades to meet the ARA’sAFRI-4 specifications. Also under the spotlightwas the rapidly progressing Uganda Refinery.

Other topics extensively discussed by the active600 participants were an idea presented by TopeShonubi, CEO of Sahara Energy, to develop anAfrican ‘brand’ to encourage tearing down ofbarriers to trade; and the endorsement of ARA’songoing work with regional economiccommunities and the African Union, to harmonizegasoline and diesel specifications.

Presentations by the African Development Bank,the African Finance Corporation and StandardBank focused participants’ attention on the criticalneed to create the right structures to satisfy themassive requirement for finance to meet thegrowing demand in Africa.

Libya to Restart PetchemPlant by Mid-AprilThe Ras Lanuf Oil and Gas Processing Company(RASCO), a subsidiary of Libya’s state-ownedoil company NOC, will see a restart of itspolyethylene plant by mid-April. The plant hadsuspended operations in 2013 due to conflictsbetween armed groups.

Several of its components were particularlyaffected and destroyed during the fighting andcurrently a host of maintenance work is beingundertaken. According to RASCO, an incineratorhas just been replaced.

In April 2018, RASCO reported that the RasLanuf ethylene plant, which has been inactivesince 2011 for the same reasons as polyethylene,would restart “soon”, without specifying the date.In Libya, industry officials place great hope inrestarting the Ras Lanuf petrochemical complexto boost government revenues, diversify themand build a new growth outlet for the NOC.

Southern Libyan Fuel Crisis at an EndBrega Oil Marketing Company confirmed thearrival of 2.8 million liters of gasoline to thesouthern region, in addition to about 200,000liters of diesel and 40 tons of liquefied gas.

In a statement, Brega said that the fuel convoyshave been sent to multiple cities in the south overthe past few days. The statement went on todeclare the end of the fuel deficit in the regionafter providing fuel at gas stations at the officialapproved price.

It also urged citizens in the south to report anyviolations with respect to the distribution of fuel,according to the statement.

South Africa NegotiatingRefinery with South SudanSouth Africa is negotiating an oil deal with SouthSudan, Energy Minister Jeff Radebe said whenspeaking to the media. The Minister’s statementfollows reports that the country was in talks toconstruct a refinery in South Sudan.

Radebe said the negotiations with South Sudanwere not exclusive and it was also looking atsecuring deals in other countries like Nigeria andEquatorial Guinea.

Reports of a $1-billion refinery deal with SouthAfrica first emerged earlier this year, saying CapeTown had already spent almost $1.4 million onthe refinery project. Radebe and the governmentwere criticized by lawmakers of going about thedeal in a secretive way. The Energy Ministerdismissed the criticism saying all was “aboveboard” in South Africa’s oil and gas negotiationswith South Sudan.

Braskem Contracts Siemensfor Sao Paulo PetchemBraskem entered into an agreement with Siemensto modernize a cogeneration power and steam

DOWNSTREAM NEWSSo

urce

: Mits

ubis

hi


plant at its petrochemical complex in Sao Paulo,Brazil. Completion of the project is expected inearly 2021.

Siemens will be responsible for implementationand the 15-year operation of an electric and steamcogeneration plant. The plant’s state-of-the-arttechnology solutions will combine high energyefficiency and extreme operational reliabilitywith low emissions. Project deployment isalready underway, whereby Siemens willimplement a fully integrated and redundantequipment solution, including two SGT600 gasturbines, an E-house, as well as an extension ofthe existing high-voltage substation, threereciprocating compressors, an advanced load-shedding system, and associated software forplant control.

Braskem’s project involves the complete overhauland technological update of the existingcogeneration plant, which provides steam andpower to the petrochemical complex’s crackingunit. The unit has an ethylene production capacityof 700,000 metric tons per year (kta) and producesraw materials for the chemical and plastic sectors.The optimized design leads to an increasedefficiency of the ethylene plant. Braskem estimatesthat the upgrade project will reduce the cracking

unit’s water consumption by 11.4 percent andCO2 emissions by 6.3 percent.

The power output of the SGT-600 turbine is24 MW. For this application, each turbine willprovide 19 MW of power and 80 tons per hour(t/h) of steam. In addition, they will feature third-generation dry low emissions (DLE) technologyand run on residue gas with high concentrationsof hydrogen. The DLE technology will reduceCO2 emissions, and NOx levels from the turbineswill be low at just 25 parts per million (ppm). Aload shedding system ensures safe operation ofthe plant by managing all loads depending on theavailable power supply.

The entire electric and steam cogeneration plantwill be engineered, deployed, operated, andmaintained by Siemens for a period of 15 yearsunder a long-term contract that includesperformance guarantees for reliability,availability, efficiency, costs, maintenance,and emissions.

Baru Reveals Algeria Pipeline PlansNigeria is considering taking its planned northerncorridor gas supply pipeline further north. NNPC,the state-run oil and gas firm, plans to amend itspipeline plans to extend it into Algeria.

Maikanti Baru, head of NNPC, told members ofPETAN that in furtherance of NNPC’s Africanintegration drive, it was considering extendingthe ongoing Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gaspipeline system across the Sahara to Algeria.NNPC indicated more than six months ago thatit was working with a Chinese consortium tofinalize the term sheet for financing of the 614-km pipeline project estimated to cost $2.8 billion.

Baru also revealed that the government plans toextend the WAGP to Morocco, reaffirming thegovernment’s plan to the WAGP to Morocco, andcommended PETAN for its contribution to thedevelopment of the Nigerian petroleum industry.The NNPC chief confirmed the company wasmaking progress in its search for oil in the northernpart of the country, adding that the KolmaniRiver-II well, which spud last month, has recordeda drilling progress of 6,700 ft. According to astatement, Baru made the disclosures when hereceived an award from executives of thePetroleum Technology Association of Nigeria(PETAN). The statement signed by NNPC’sGroup General Manager, Group Public Affairs,Ndu Ughamadu, quoted Baru as saying that thetarget of the corporation for the Kolmani Riverdrill was 14,200 ft, even as he added that thedepth could be longer, depending on findings.


NEW PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Weatherford International brought to marketthe world’s first remote-activated, single-tripdeepwater completion system. By combiningthe upper and lower completions in one trip,the system has been shown to reduceinstallation time between 40-60 percent andto reduce rig time by four to six days.

Using radio-frequency identification (RFID)technology, the field-proven TR1P systemdelivers 100 percent intervention-lessoperation in both producer and injector wells.

The industry has already taken note of TR1P’sdeepwater capabilities: It has been named aSpotlight on New Technology® Awardwinner by the Offshore TechnologyConference (OTC) ahead of their 2019event to be held in Houston, May 6-9. TR1Palso received a Meritorious Award forEngineering Innovation from HartEnergy publishing. Both awards are presentedfor break-through innovation productsimpacting offshore exploration andproduction.

Weatherford TR1P™ Wins“Spotlight on New Technology®” Award

Rigworld Training Center (RTC), out ofGhana, signed an agreement with the EcoleSuperieure de Dakar (ESP) to introduce oiland gas specific courses aimed at meetingdemand for local expertise in Senegal. RTC’snew agreement with ESP is expected toupgrade local skills in order to shape youngprofessionals to engage in the oil and gasand mining sectors.

Daba Dieng, Rigworld Group West AfricaManager stated: “This model of partnershipbetween African structures (Ghana and

Senegal) comes at the right time to meetthe challenge of vocational trainingadapted to new jobs emerging in oil & gas,mining, etc.”

The agreement follows Senegal inauguratinga National Petroleum Institute (INPG) toshape oil and gas engineers in Q4 2018. Inorder to increase numbers and trainingoptions, the private sector is also taking onthe challenge. Dubai-based Dermon Oil &Gas announced the launch of an academyjust a few weeks ago.

Rigworld Training Center is a Ghanaian-owned, ISO 9001:2015 Oil and Gasaccredited safety training center that excelsin providing a range of client-focused safetytraining services and products to the offshoreand onshore oil and gas, maritime,underwater, construction, and generalhazardous industries.

The Ecole Supérieure Polytechnique is apublic institution with a regional vocation,attached to the Cheikh Anta Diop Universityof Dakar, Senegal.

Rigworld and ESP to Introduce Industry Courses in Senegal

Sour

ce: W

eath

erfo

rd

Smart Data Solutions, part of CGG’sGeoscience division, has opened a new state-of-the-art reservoir fluids and gas samplestorage facility in Schulenburg, just west ofHouston, Texas. To ensure the integrity ofstored sample assets, the purpose-built 60,000cu. ft. facility is securely enclosed and video-monitored. It also offers the latest inautomated fire protection security and spillcontainment, all delivered in a cost-effective,state of the art storage solution.

Combined with the existing 23 storagebuildings and laboratory, CGG offers oil andgas companies over 4 million cubic feet ofstorage capacity and associated services forlong-term, high-volume oil and gas assetsample storage, all under one roof. The

facility design prioritizes lower storage costsand optimized storage allocation in a varietyof controlled conditions (frozen, chilled, A/Cand ambient environments), making thesefacilities an excellent location for E&Pcompanies to locate their entire sampleinventories.

Instant data access, online searching,reporting and ordering of samples is enabledby CGG’s PleXus system, an integratedsystem of record with associated chain ofcustody tracking.

Kamal Al-Yahya, SVP, GeoscienceSoftware & Smart Data Solutions, CGG,said: “With over 40 years of experience insample management and analysis,

CGG understands the true business valueof these assets for our clients and theirhighly specialized needs. Our new world-class Schulenburg storage facility offersclients a complete, cost-effective andconvenient solution for all critical true sourceasset storage.”

Ultramodern CGG Facility Boasts Secure and Cost-EffectiveStorage of Reservoir Fluids and Gas Samples

Sour

ce: C

GG



ZYFRA Group, Finnish-Russian AI and IIoTsolutions developer has successfully testedan Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP)software unit, designed to enhance theefficiency of oil extraction by boosting oilwell production rates by 1.5 percent withoutany additional capital investment.

The ESP software unit is now operationalfor more than three months in 500 oil wellsin Western Siberia, Russia, which makes anadditional profit of $2 million and the growthin production is 1.5 percent.

It is equipped with artificial intelligence toprovide recommendations based on historicalBig Data analysis. The unit recommends amode of well operation that will ensuremaximum oil flow rate for a certain periodof time and provides for stable operationduring that period by analyzing current

frequency, gauged oil flow rate, periods ofintermittent pump operation and otheroperating parameters.

The highest demand for the ESP softwareunit is expected from Russia, US, China aswell as from African markets like Sudan,Libya, Algeria, and Egypt.

“Scientists regularly claim that the era of oilwill end soon and that readily availablehydrocarbons are almost exhausted. Thedigitalization of the oil and gas industry willhelp simplify extraction of hard-to-recoveroil while at the same time extending thelifespan of the oilfield by more than onedecade,” said Dmitry Krikunov, ZYFRA’sAI team leader in the oil & gas sector.

“The primary motivation for investing indigitalization is to improve efficiency.

According to Gartner, the ‘smart oil deposit’concept could help oil companies to cut costsby 5 percent and enhance production volumesby 2 percent. CERA calculates that ‘smartoil and gas deposits’ could cut productioncosts by 1-6 percent, shrink oil-well downtimeby 1-4 percent and reduce labor intensity byup to 25 percent,” said Krikunov.

With its new AI equipped ESP software unitZYFRA aims to capture a sizeable share ofthe global market of digital solutions for theupstream oil & gas industry valuing $366million. The total global market in this sectoris valued at up to $8.9 billion.

ZYFRA has cumulatively earned more than$3 million from India-related deals. Thecompany plans to enhance its presence inthe Indian market and reach the target of $50million in deals by 2021.

Finnish-Russian Firm Tests Solution toBoost Production, Eyes Africa

Emerson and Repsol announced recentlythat they have established a strategic allianceto deliver advanced subsurface geophysicaltechnologies to significantly reduce the timeto prospect and produce first oil.

To achieve this critical industry goal, Emersonwill work collaboratively with Repsol toimplement and deploy advanced subsurfaceimaging technologies, with core technologiesdeveloped by Repsol as part of Kaleidoscope,its 10-year innovation project. Theseadvances will be used by a broad range ofthe geoscience community within Repsoland in all oil and gas companies that chooseto license the technologies. The solutioncombines the latest in high-end visualization,high-performance computing and clouddelivery.

These technologies have contributed to theexploration success ratio of Repsol, withspecial significance in settings ofcomplex geology in countries like Brazil,Peru and Bolivia.

“Emerson is helping the energy industryimplement the latest digital technologies tor e a l i z e s i g n i f i c a n t p e r f o r m a n c eimprovements,” said Lal Karsanbhai,

executive president of Emerson’s AutomationSolutions business. “We’re proud of ourcollaboration, to help Repsol bring thissubsurface reservoir imaging innovation tothe geoscience community. It is a greatexample of how technology and collaborationcan deliver business value for the oil andgas industry.”

The partnership, which includes a jointinvestment of both research and development,will enable Repsol and Emerson to producecommercially available software productsfor license to help other oil field operatorsand service companies.

“The strategic partnership between Emersonand Repsol will enable the oil and gasindustry to benefit from the deployment ofour proprietary core technologies related tothe enhancement of seismic processingand interpretation,” said Tomás GarcíaBlanco, executive managing director ofexploration and production for Repsol.“Our collaboration will build technologybridges between the domains of seismicimaging and interpretation, bringinghigh-end technology awareness andaccess to a broader geoscient is tcommunity.”

The first phase of the collaboration willprovide advanced solutions for velocitydetermination, including full waveforminversion and advanced solutions for seismicimaging developed in the Repsol TechnologyLab. In addition, the collaboration can beextended to a broader range of Repsolsubsurface technologies.

Emerson’s E&P software portfolio – whichintegrates and forecasts oilfield data withproduction and reservoir engineeringfundamentals – and its advanced cloud-basedplatform are designed to help operatorsincrease efficiencies and achieve Top Quartileperformance on investment and operationalgoals within new and established oil and gasreservoirs. Top Quartile performance isdefined as achieving operations and capitalperformance in the top 25 percent of peercompanies.

Emerson/Repsol Cooperate on Advanced, Cloud-BasedExploration & Development Software

Sour

ce: E

mer

son

What motivated the recent change in licensing procedures inAngola?Strictly speaking, there was no change in licensing procedures inAngola, but only a reduction in the duration of public tenders,which normally exceeded 365 days, to 224 days. (Decree 86/18of 2 April). This amendment intends to give greater dynamismand speed to the bidding process, allowing greater frequency inthe adjudication of new areas.

Will Sonangol continue to handle licenses and negotiationsuntil the National Oil and Gas Agency is fully established andoperational?The ANPG – Agência Nacional de Petróleo e Gás, implementationplan and transfer of the National Concessionaire function wasdesigned so as not to cause disruption in the work of the NationalConcessionaire. With the amendment by the National Assemblyof laws 10/04 and 13/04, Petroleum Activities Law and TaxationLaw of oil activities, in particular, the premises are created so thatthe ANPG can fulfill its duties.

What factors determined the phased production schedulebetween 2019 and 2025?First, production forecasts are established on an annual basis andforecasts for the period 2019-2025 have been drawn up takinginto account the Sector Strategy which aims, among otherthings, to:- Ensure the replacement of reserves, promoting the exploitationactivity in a rational and adequate manner;- Initiate measures suitable for the confirmation of the country’soil potential;- Provide enough crude oil to meet internal refining capacity, byweighing the economic viability of the export versus import.

The next licensing competition will also include the marginalfields, according to reports. What are these fields and whatincentives are there to attract investors?Although the Concession allocation map contained in the GeneralStrategy does not contemplate blocks with marginal fields, theExecutive, through its National Concessionaire, has developedlegislative and other actions to encourage investment in thedevelopment of marginal fields. With the conditions alreadycreated, we believe that some proposals of this nature will bedeveloped in the near future.

MONTHLY FOCUS

Executive Perspective

Relections with Minister Diamantino AzevedaRelections with Minister Diamantino Azeveda

ANGOLAANGOLA

PA:

H.E.:

PA:

H.E.:

PA:

H.E.: PA:

Sour

ce: A

fric

a O

il &

Pow

er

H.E.:

Angola is moving its petroleum industry forward with some sweeping reforms aimed at attracting new investment and boostingproduction. H.E. Dr. Diamantino Azevedo, Minister of Mineral Resources and Petroleum, agreed to speak to Petroleum Africa,

on some of the new developments taking place in the country.


Are there Angolan companies in the oil and gas explorationand production industry that have the qualifications toparticipate in the planned competitions?There are some national companies in the country, which webelieve have the technical and financial capacity to participate inpossible competitions, such as Sonangol P & P, Somoil, etc. Othernational companies may also participate if they develop thenecessary organizational and technical capacities to capture theinvestments required for this type of activity.

The Ministry acknowledged that the new exploration programsare waiting for investments to increase production, which isalready in decline. Are there ongoing efforts to extend the lifeof today's fields with improved oil recovery techniques?The decline in oilfield production is a natural, predictable andquantifiable process, allowing strategies and methodologies to beslowed down, thus increasing the volume and/or the useful life ofmature fields. The different operators in the national market havechanneled several programs involving improved methodologiesand techniques to optimize the levels of recovery of crude oil intheir concessions. For example, new seismic studies have allowedto identify areas of reservoirs not properly exploited, facilitatingthe drilling of new wells with positive results.

In your opinion, what are the most attractive gas monetizationprojects available in Angola?The country currently produces about 3 billion cubic feet a day ofassociated natural gas. In the past much of this gas was burned,missing the opportunity of its economic and financial recovery, inaddition to the evils caused to the environment. In order to take

advantage of this resource in the then discovered deepwater oilfields, it was decided to build a gas liquefaction plant – AngolaLNG – which is currently the only project for gas monetizationand which can be the example to leverage other industrialprojects of gas monetization, such as fertilizer factories, etc. Severalprojects have been proposed and MIREMPET – Ministry ofMineral Resources and Petroleum – is preparing the Gas MasterPlan, which will assist in the definition of feasible gasmonetization projects.

Is there any relevant aspect of Angola’s future industry plansthat is important to add here?The oil and gas sector is undergoing restructuring with the creationof the Oil Derivatives Regulatory Institute (IRDP) (whose functionis to ensure the objectivity of the regulation rules and thetransparency of commercial relations between the various agentsinvolved in the segment of downstream) and of the National Oiland Gas Agency (ANPG) (new national concessionaire). Arestructuring program for Sonangol is underway to focus on itscore business of exploration, production, refining andcommercialization.

Several legislative initiatives have been produced to improve thebusiness environment, encourage investors and increase theavailability of petroleum resources. As an example, PresidentialDispatch no. 290/17, of 13 October, stands out; PresidentialLegislative Decree No. 2/16 of 13 June and the new Diploma onthe principle of tolerance and contractual flexibility in order tomeet the current requirements of the oil market to promote thedevelopment of marginal fields.


PA:

H.E.:

PA:

H.E.:

PA:

H.E.:

PA:

H.E.:

Write [email protected] book you space

any medical protocols are written for the Oil & Gas industryrelating to countries and areas where access to hospitalcare is relatively easy. They vary from country to country

and some are stricter than others but, in the main, they are proven forthe areas in which they are used. Such protocols, however, have notnecessarily been considered for use in regions such as remote parts ofAfrica; isolated, harsh industrial environments, or offshore installations.To ensure high quality care and to avoid unnecessary medevacs orrecordables in these places, medical guidelines need to be environment-specific.

Medical protocols are a set of guidelines followed by an emergencymedical technician or nurse that is responsible for a group of oil & gasworkers. They provide a clear, logical structure for clinical managementand are a vital part of ensuring consistent, high quality patient care.For Emergency Medical Services (EMS) they are now an excepted andproven method of increasing the level of medical care in a communityby providing paramedics with a way to administer medicines and makebest choices without the support of a fully qualified doctor. For medicalsupport in some of the most remote parts of our planet, however, it isvital these protocols reflect the options and conditions that are availableto the clinician.

When definitive hospital care is distant from the oil & gas operations,even seemingly simple medical concerns can be complicated andquickly escalate if not handled correctly. “Cookbook” medicine, whichprescribes specific responses to scenarios, is not a practical approachand to ensure best outcomes, paramedics may need to go beyond theirnormal limits of practicing medicine as seen in cities and developedcountries. Having the correct, location-specific, Remote Health CareProvider (RHCP) protocols in place standardizes the quality of medicalcare provided, regardless of what resources are available locally, andhelps ensure highest quality, evidence-based patient care while avoidingunnecessary case escalations and evacuations. These guidelines,combined with expert remote medical support via telemedicine, result

in safe implementation of treatments to the same level as a physicianand to modern care quality standards.

In remote regions, local medical care may already be in place, but thestandard of treatment may vary dramatically. In such circumstances,experts in remote medical services can offer an HSE oversight andprovide appropriate, workable, RHCP guidelines so local physicianscan provide the necessary level of care. Through oversight, auditing,100% chart review, and providing guidance to local doctors, localresources can be fully integrated into a comprehensive, high qualitycare package of an assured standard.

RHCP guidelines need to be available for different patient presentationsand provide onsite medics the information they need to make the rightdecisions. These guidelines, however, should not be proscriptive andrequire appropriately trained medical staff in place who can use theguidelines, interact with the patient and make an active judgement onthe required course of action. With the right protocols and suitablemedical providers available locally, patients can be placed into well-defined risk groups, additional telemedicine support sought if needed,

M

LOCAL IMPACT

By Loreen Lock, Clinical Operations Director, Remote Medical International.

Remote Location Oil & GasMedical Protocols

Remote Location Oil & GasMedical Protocols


and evacuation to hospital only becomes an option when it is appropriateto do so. Generalized or outdated protocols and poorly trained staff,on the other hand, often make medical evacuation the default option,even if it is not required.

Of course, this approach only truly minimizes escalation and evacuationif onsite medics have the telemedicine support of experienced,board-certified physicians trained in both emergency medicine,occupational medicine, injury management, and operational medicine.RHCP guidelines need to clearly advise when tele-consultation isrequired. Circumstances will include the prescription of certain medicinesor specific symptoms or injuries that indicate complex cases. Even ifnot required by the guidelines, the onsite clinician can still obtain asecond opinion from these experts if they have any doubts whatsoever.This gives remote, highly-trained, local medical practitioners thefreedom to make judgements against the guidelines while setting clearthresholds for consultation. This team approach has been proven toensure appropriate decisions are made and patient outcomes areconsistently improved within the oil & gas industry.

Beside the need for medical protocols to be location-specific, they alsoneed to be continually renewed and updated in line with latest knowledge,ongoing learning from field cases and medical advances. Along withthe peace of mind that an employer is working with a remote medicalexpert, this regular review of guidelines ensures employees workingin harsh, industrial settings get the best and most appropriate medicalcare at that point in time.

Summary – higher qualitymedical care often costs less overallFor oil & gas companies, using a higher quality medical provider mayadd additional initial cost. Compared with using a standard medicalpackage, however, a carefully selected combination of bespoke servicesto suit the needs of the location and the provision of highly trainedmedical personnel may better meet care needs while actually reducingthe overall cost with fewer evacuations. Using remote medical experts,both employers and their employees can have the assurance of consistent,high quality medical support and a partnership that works to continuouslyimprove medical care and outcomes wherever they are in the world.



ach year when Petroleum Africa reviews the offshore progressthat has been made in bringing oil and gas developmentsonline, a number of top projects stand out; the past year was

no different.

World FirstThe feather in Africa’s cap for the period came in the form of offshorenatural gas production. The continent saw a ‘world first’ in March 2018when the first “converted” floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) vesselcame into service, offshore Cameroon.

The Hilli Episeyo FLNG vessel was converted from the 294-meter,1975-built Moss LNG carrier with a storage capacity of 125,000 m3.It was designed for a liquefaction capacity of about 2.4 million tonnesof LNG per annum. This FLNG unit is also the first such facility inAfrica, and the second in the world to come online. The first offloadingand commercial operations began in May 2018.

The Hilli Episeyo is anchored 2 km from the Sanaga 1 platform offKribi. It is equipped with four liquefaction trains, each to producebetween 500,000 to 700,000 tons per year of LNG. The Sanaga Southgas fields, the Bipaga complex and the Hilli Episeyo were connectedby 56 kms of multiphase pipeline to transport gas to the onshoreprocessing plant (CPF) to be separated from its liquids by lowtemperature treatment, then exported to the floating terminal by threeturbochargers to be liquefied and stored. The liquefied petroleum gasis extracted by a series of two columns and stored in two spheres tosupply the local market.

Perenco states that these facilities,as a whole, “allow Perenco andstate-firm SNH to produce1,200,000 tons of LNG for export,26,000 tons of domestic gas forCameroonian households; and3,300 bopd stabilized condensatesexported on the Ebome field,giving a second life to tankerLa Lobe.”

AngolaKaomboLast November, Angola saw the inauguration of Total’s Kaombo projectoffshore the country on Block 32 where the project came on stream inJuly. The Kaombo is the biggest offshore development in Angola. Theproject comprises a large subsea system including 59 wells (withover 60% of themalready drilled),and two FPSOunits which wereconverted fromVery Large CrudeCarriers. Kaomboalso sets a newrecord in terms oflocal content inAngola as 20%of the 110 millionproject hourswere workedlocally.

E

TECHNOLOGY AND SOLUTIONS

Africa continues to excel at bringing world-class offshore developments online

OFFSHORE EXCELLENCEOFFSHORE EXCELLENCE

Sour

ce: P

eren

co

Sour

ce: T

otal

Key Dates

Arrival of FLNG in Cameroon: 20 November 2017First gas reception: 14 December 2017First liquefaction: 9 March 2018First offloading: 15 May 2018Commercial start date: 31 May 2018

Project Figures

+700 people involved in this project56 km of pipeline set4 drilled wells9,000 tons of equipment transported (weight of the Eiffel tower)2,000 m3 of concrete75 km of cable laid+67,000 inches (1.7 km) of welding

Sour

ce: P

eren

co

Perenco’s FLNG Project At a Glance


The full Kaombo development consists of six fields spread over anarea of 800 sq km. Gengibre, Gindungo and Caril were connected tothe Kaombo Norte FPSO which started up last year, while the threefields, Mostarda, Canela and Louro, have now been connected to theKaombo Sul FPSO.

A total of 59 wells will be connected to the two FPSOs through oneof the world’s largest subsea networks. Together, they will develop theresources of all six previously mentioned fields over an area of 800sq km in the central and southern part of the block.

The first FPSO, Kaombo Norte, came on stream in July 2018, with aproduction capacity of 115,000 bpd and the start-up of the secondFPSO of similar capacity, Kaombo Sul, came in March of this year.The overall production will reach an estimated 230,000 bpd at peakand the associated gas will be exported to the Angola LNG plant aspart of the Group’s commitment to stop routine flaring..“Leveraging the experience of Kaombo Norte, Kaombo Sul started upin the best possible conditions. This second FPSO stands out as anexcellent example of standardization to reduce costs and improveefficiency. Its start-up will contribute to the Group’s cash flow andproduction growth in 2019 and beyond,” stated Arnaud Breuillac,President Exploration & Production at Total. “This achievementdemonstrates once again Total’s commitment to Angola, as the Groupdevelops short cycle projects on Block 17 in parallel ...”

West Hub/East HubItalian major ENI operates Block 15/06, which lies around 350 kmnorth-west of Luanda and 130 km west of Soyo. Production from theVandumbu field came onstream in December. The Italian firm startedproduction from the field through the West Hub N’Goma FPSO.

First oil from the Vandumbu field was achieved in late November 2018,three months ahead of schedule. This, along with the start-up of aSubsea Multiphase Boosting System (SMBS) achieved in earlyDecember, is boosting the oil production from Block 15/06 by 20,000bpd. The ramp-up of Vandumbu was completed in Q1 2019with thestart-up of the VAN-102 well which achieved an initial production rateof 13,000 bpd. This, together with the start-up of another productionwell in the Mpungi field, will bring the production of Block 15/06 toa total of about 170,000 boepd, further extending the production plateau.

The two start-ups mark a further step forward in the phased and clustereddevelopment strategy that ENI has adopted for Block 15/06, and whichhas allowed the start-up of eight fields since November 2014, whenproduction from West Hub started from the Sangos field. The wellsare equipped with the most advanced environmental sustainability andsafety systems, including gas flaring and water discharge zeroingsystems, and are grouped into two large macro-areas: West Hub andEast Hub, where ENI has started-up eight fields, four of which camein 2018 alone.

ENI also reports that the Agogo exploration prospect is another importantdiscovery in the field. While drilling, the company found a singlemineralized column of light oil, estimated to contain between 450 and650 million barrels of oil, with further potential.

EgyptZohrOffshore Egypt sits the massive Zohr field discovered in August 2015in the Shorouk Block. First production came online in December 2017,under three years from discovery. The field is estimated to hold morethan 30 Tcf of resources (about 5.5 billion boe). Since that time operatorENI and partner BP have upped production significantly and madeanother massive discovery.

ENI’s CEO, Claudio Descalzi revealed that the company was on trackto see production from the Zohr field reach 2.9 Bcf/d by mid-2019. Healso confirmed that by mid-2019, seven trains would be processingthe production.

And the company is well on its way to achieving its goals. In April2018 the start of T-1 increased the field’s production capacity to 800Mmcf/d, and then a few weeks later the third production unit (T-2)increased the installed capacity to 1.2 Bcf/d. This outstandingresult was achieved only a few months after the first gas in December2017 and one year before the schedule of the Plan of Development(PoD). By September 2018, the field was producing 2 Bcf/d,equivalent to approximately 365,000 boepd. This level of productionwas achieved thanks to the start-up of the fifth production unit (T4),backed by the eight gas producers and a new 30” x 218 km sea line,commissioned in August. In February 2019, Zohr had reached2.1 Bcf/d.


Sour

ce: S

aipe

m

FPSO N’Goma

Sour

ce: O

PS A

ngol

a

By early April of this year, ENI had launchedwork on its seventh natural gas processingplant at the Zohr field, following thecompletion of the sixth processing plant atthe end of March. The plant is set to boostthe field’s production capacity to 2.7 Bcf/dby the end of July.

According to Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum,investments by the partners over the2019/2020 fiscal year will “intensify

development activities in the Zohr area.”Zohr development costs infiscal 2018/2019 (to end-June) were put at $3.2 billion, the Ministrysaid, adding Zohr partners plan to invest an estimated $1.2 billionduring the 2019/2020 fiscal year.

NigeriaEginaProduction started from Nigeria’s latest mega offshore developmentin December. Total, the operator of the development, brought the Eginafield on to production on December 29. At plateau the Egina is expectedto produce 200,000 bpd.

The Egina field is located at water depths of between 1,400 and 1,700meters, 200 kilometers offshore from Port Harcourt. The project isbased on a subsea production system connected to a FPSO designedto hold 2.3 million barrels of oil. Weighing close to 220,000 metrictons and measuring 330 meters long by 60 meters wide, the EginaFPSO is the largest ever built by Total. The FPSO is connected to 44subsea wells at a depth of 1,600 meters.

This project has involved a record level of local contractors. Six of the18 modules on the FPSO were built and integrated locally, and 77%of hours spent on the project were worked locally. Startup was achievedclose to 10% below the initial budget, which represents more than $1billion in capex savings, due in particular to excellent drillingperformance where the drilling time per well has been reduced by 30%.

Arnaud Breuillac, President Exploration & Production, at the time,stated, “Furthermore, some upside potential nearby remains to bedeveloped and we are studying in particular Preowei discovery tie-back to the Egina FPSO.”

The Egina field is the second development in production on OML 130following the Akpo field, which started-up in 2009. The Preowei fieldis another large discovery made on this prolific block for which aninvestment decision is scheduled to be taken this year.

TECHNOLOGY AND SOLUTIONSSo

urce

: Ros

neft

Sour

ce: T

otal

Sour

ce: T

otal

$500Targeted market boosts available, contact sales representative to discuss your needs and rates

SOCIAL MEDIA

Followers 26,900+ Followers 5,000+ Likes 2,350+

26,900+

LinkedInFollowers



hile market dynamics have changed repeatedly over thepast decade-and-a-half on concerns the market is eitherover- or under-supplied, the long-term outlook for other

natural gas producing countries to successfully monetize their resourcesas LNG is good. At present Australia and Qatar are leading the LNGexport race but with recent analysis bullish on demand growth, thedoor is seemingly open for new entrants.

Despite the growing supply base of LNG around the world there area host of reasons that LNG remains a positive bet for investors. Besidesthe potential economic aspects, one reason in particular stands out:meeting the increased energy demand as the world’s population expandsover the next few decades. According to Shell in its “LNG Outlook2019” report, “by 2070 the world is likely to be using at least 50%more energy than it does today as population grows and people seekto improve their quality of life.”

It is apparent there will be futuremarkets for LNG as fossil fuelusage is not going away any timesoon until long-term, sustainablesolutions are developed and broughtonline around the globe. Accordingto Shell, “Strong demand forcleaner-burning fuel in Asiacontinued to drive rapid growth inliquefied natural gas (LNG) use in2018, with global demand risingby 27 million tons to 319 milliontons.” The report continued, “Shellexpects demand to reach about 384million tons in 2020. Global LNGsupply is set to rise by 35 milliontons in 2019. Both Europe and Asiaare expected to absorb all thisadditional supply. A rebound in new

long-term LNG contracting in 2018 could revive investment inliquefaction projects. Based on current demand projections, Shell stillexpects supplies to tighten in mid-2020s…” This is good news forcountries looking to become LNG exporters.

Africa’s Current ProducersAlgeria, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Libya and Nigeria are already long-established LNG exporters, and some have plans to increase theirexports or add new trains, and expand their capacity for export. Algeria’sSonatrach, for example, contracted China Harbor Engineering Company(CHEC) in January for port installations and a LNG terminal. Underthe $455-million contract, CHEC will provide studies of, and set upa terminal for LNG, plus it will build marine and harbor infrastructurefor a fuel terminal at Skikda.

The project is expected to take over two years to complete and willallow for the upgrade of LNG production to 220,000 cubic meters perday and the loading of large capacity methane tankers between 50,000and 250,000 tons. Part of Sonatrach’s 2030 Strategy includes theconstruction of a new LNG terminal and the expansion of the oilterminal at Skikda, which will allow the company to increase itsproduction and open up to more international markets.

To the west, the final investment decision (FID) on Train 7 of NigeriaLiquefied Natural Gas Co.’s LNG plant is expected to be taken by Q4of this year. The company said that funds for the seventh train werebeing sourced in order to actualize the project. Train 7 will growNLNG’s production capacity from 22 mtpa to 30 mtpa, once completed.Equatorial Guinea, while having a conventional liquefaction plant,hasplans to become a small volume LNG exporter under its LNG2 initiative.These small volumes are targeted to go to its West African neighborsvia floating LNG (FLNG). It was announced last year that Togo, would

W

DOWNSTREAM FOCUS

LNGOut of Africa

Africa is well positioned to take its place in the long-term LNG game.

A rebound in new long-term LNG contractingin 2018 could revive

investment inliquefaction projects.

Based on currentdemand projections,

Shell still expectssupplies to tighten in

mid-2020s…

Skikda

Sour

ce: K

BR


DOWNSTREAM FOCUS

study the import of LNG from Equatorial Guinea, and its regasificationand use for power generation.

Also online are the Angola LNG plant and Cameroon’s floating LNG(FLNG) facility, both are relative newcomers to the African LNG scene.Coming onstream in 2013 at a cost of $12 billion, the Angola LNGproject is one of the largest single investments in the Angolan oiland gas industry. Angola LNG’s use of associated gas as a primaryfeed source is unlike other LNG projects which tend to use non-associated gas. As a result, the plant significantly contributes tothe elimination of gas flaring in Angola. The plant is designed toprocess 1.1 Bcf of natural gas per day and has the capacity to produce5.2 million tons of LNG per annum – plus natural gas, propane, butaneand condensate.

Cameroon made industry news when it brought its FLNG projectonstream in March 2018. Perenco and state firm SNH in September2015 signed an agreement with Golar LNG to develop the remainingreserves of the Sanaga field into LPG for the domestic market andLNG for export through an innovative FLNG vessel to be mooredoffshore Sanaga. The Hilli Episeyo was converted from the 1975-builtMoss LNG carrier with a storage capacity of 125,000 m3, this conversionwas a world first and the FLNG facility, and African first. It wasdesigned for a liquefaction capacity of about 2.4 million tons of LNGper annum.

Future LNG ProducersLooking to join the ranks of African LNG exporters in a big way arethe oft publicized Mozambique and Tanzania, and more recently,Mauritania and Senegal.

In 2010, Anadarko made its first discovery in the Offshore Area 1 ofthe deepwater Rovuma Basin. To date, the company and its partnershave discovered approximately 75 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of recoverablenatural gas resources in Offshore Area 1 and are working to developone of the world’s most significant LNG projects. Mozambique’s plansare well underway. The project is progressing towards developinginitially an onshore LNG plant consisting of two LNG trains with totalnameplate capacity of 12.88 mmtpa to support the development of theGolfinho-Atum field located entirely within Offshore Area 1. With theapproval of the development plan in February 2018, ongoing resettlementimplementation activities, site preparation and execution of salespurchase agreements (SPAs), the final investment decision is expectedin H1 2019.

This past March, ONGC Videsh revealed that the Mozambique LNG1Company, which is the JV marketing company of ONGC Videsh andthe other partners, entered into long-term LNG SPAs with severalcompanies. The SPAs include deals with Tokyo Gas and Centrica LNGCompany through a co-purchasing agreement for the sale of 2.6 mmtpafrom the start-up of production until the early 2040s. Anotheragreement was signed with CNOOC Gas and Power Singapore Trading& Marketing (CNOOC) for 1.5 mmpta for a term of 13 years, andShell International Trading Middle East for 2 mmpta for a term of13 years.

The latest deals signed for Area 1 LNG are with fellow Indian firmBharat Gas Resources for 1 mmpta for a term of 15 years, and Pertamina,a state-owned oil and gas company of Indonesia, for 1 mmpta for aterm of 20 years. These deals build upon previously executed deals forlong term offtake of LNG from the Rovuma Offshore Area 1 projectand take long-term sales to more than 9.5 mmpta.

Meanwhile, Mozambique’s Area 4 saw some big changes when in late2017 ENI farmed out a stake to supermajor ExxonMobil. The deepwaterArea 4 block contains more than 85 Tcf. Other partners include CNPC,Mozambique’s state firm ENH, Kogas, and Galp. ENI’s initial plansfor 5 mmpta trains changed in mid-2018 when the Mozambique RovumaVenture submitted the development plan to the government for the firstphase production out of the Mamba fields. The proposed plan nowincludes the design and construction of two trains which would eachproduce 7.6 million tons of LNG per year. These would be the world’slargest LNG trains outside of Qatar. In the Coral South field, ENI isleading plans to develop a FLNG facility in addition to the main project.ExxonMobil will lead construction and operation of natural gasliquefaction and related facilities, and ENI will lead construction and

Sour

ce: A

ngol

a LN

G

Anadarko Mozambique LNG Facility Site Detailand Offshore Area 1 Natural Gas Field

Sour

ce: A

nada

rko

Petr

oleu

m C

orp.

Sour

ce: S

NH

operation of upstream facilities and FLNG. A final investment decisionby the Area 4 joint venture parties is scheduled in 2019, with LNGproduction expected to commence in 2024.

In Tanzania’s Block 2, Equinor and partners are sitting on an estimated20 Tcf of natural gas which they plan to monetize as LNG. The gas inBlock 2 is spread across several reservoirs in locations up to kilometersapart, making the development a bit more complex. The constructionof an estimated $30-billion LNG export terminal near the natural gasdiscoveries has been delayed by regulatory issues for a few years butseems to now be getting back on track. The eventual production isexpected to be about 7.5 mmpta. Part of the gas produced will bediverted for domestic consumption.

In March, Tanzania’s Energy Ministry said that talks with foreignoperators on the development of its planned LNG facility shouldconclude in September. “The government has officially decided tobegin talks in early April for construction of the LNG project,” Tanzania’senergy ministry said in a statement. “We are keen to implement thiskey project for the economy and we plan to … conclude the talks inSeptember this year.” The talks are aimed at negotiating a hostgovernment agreement, which is seen as a crucial step towards reachinga FID for the project. The decision to push talks forward was reachedfollowing a meeting on March 22 between the energy minister, MedardKalemani, and Mette Ottøy, a senior VP at Equinor.

BP and partner Kosmos Energy will fast-track the development of thenatural gas resources discovered offshore Mauritania and Senegal. The

Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project will produce gas from an ultra-deepwater subsea system and mid-water FPSO, which will process thegas, removing heavier hydrocarbon components. The gas will then betransferred to a FLNG facility at an innovative nearshore hub locatedon the Mauritania and Senegal maritime border.

The FLNG facility is designed to provide circa 2.5 million tons ofLNG per annum on average, with the total gas resources in the fieldestimated to be around 15 Tcf. The partnership is also evaluatingpotential expansion up to 10 mmtpa in subsequent phases. The project,the first major gas project to reach FID in the basin, is planned toprovide LNG for global export as well as making gas available fordomestic use in both Mauritania and Senegal.

Greater Tortue development area

Sour

ce: K

osm

os E

nerg

y


lgeria started off as an autonomous province of the OttomanEmpire until 1830 when the French seized Algiers. TheFrench held on to the territory for more than a century until

the collapse of the French and Anglo-American occupation of NorthAfrica during World War II. The country gained independence fromFrance in 1962 and in 1963 Ahmed Ben Bella was elected as Algeria’sfirst president.

Bella’s reign did not last long, with Colonel Houari Boumedienneoverthrowing him in 1965 with a pledge to end corruption. In 1976Boumedienne introduced a new constitution which confirmed acommitment to socialism and role of the National Liberation Front asthe sole political party. Islam was recognized as the state religion. Thepeople of Algeria elected Boumedienne as president in 1976; however,like Bella, his tenure was not long. He died in 1978 and was replacedby another military man, Colonel Chadli Bendjedid.

Bendjedid held onto the office until 1992 when the army forced himto dissolve parliament and resign, replacing him with a Higher StateCouncil chaired by Mohamed Boudiaf. This was followed by thedeclaration of a state of emergency and the disbanding of the IslamicSalvation Front (FIS) and all its local and regional counciladministrations. This triggered a decade of bloody conflict with Islamistgroups and the assassination of Boudiaf. The next seven years sawnothing but blood shed until 1999 and the election of AbdelazizBouteflika, the former Foreign Minister.

Bouteflika won every election held for almost two decades, until adelayed Arab Spring visited the country this year. The president, whohad been ailing for years and rarely seen in public, announced hisintention to once again run for office in Algeria’s latest elections. Thisled to massive street protests, which in the end had prompted PresidentBouteflika to resign, having earlier postponed presidential electionsbecause of the political turmoil.

Under Algeria’s constitution, the speaker of Algeria’s upper house ofparliament is to take over as interim leader for a maximum of 90 days;this put Abdelkader Bensalah in the office of president on an interimbasis. The interim president promised to organize free elections within 90 days saying “I am committed to organizing elections.” The armywas aligned with the constitution as a pathway out of the crisis, headded in his 16-minute speech. In a televised statement, Bensalah saidhe would consult with the political class and civil society. While theinterim president seems to be saying the right things, protestors arelooking for a whole different government. Bensalah is a long-timeally of Bouteflika and seen as part of the ruling caste by theprotesters. Promises were made to “set a national and sovereigncommission to secure fair elections,” but it is unclear as of yet if theprotestors will take a wait-and-see stance when it comes to Bensalah’spromises. Demonstrators are calling for radical change and not moreof the same of Algeria’s elite who include veterans of the war ofindependence against France, ruling party figures, businessmen, thearmy and labor unions.Elections are currently scheduled for July 4.

A

By Jennifer Nickle, Deputy Editor

Afr i can Focus

Politics & Economy

ALGERIAALGERIA

Interim President: Abdelkader Bensalah(since April 2019)Independence: July 5, 1962 (from France)Population: 41,657,488(July 2018 est.)GDP (purchasing power parity):$630 billion (2017 est.)Real GDP Growth Rate: 1.4% (2017 est.)Per Capita GDP: $15,200 (2017 est.)Minister of Mines and Energy: Mohamed ArkabOil Production: 1.051 million bpd (December 2018 est.)Oil Consumption: 428,000 bpd (2015 est.)Proven Oil Reserves: 12.26 billion barrels (January 2018 est.)Natural Gas Production: 79.65 billion cu m (2015 est.)Natural Gas Consumption: 36.65 billion cu m (2015 est.)Natural Gas Imports: N/AProven Natural Gas Reserves: 4.505 trillion cu m(January 2016 est.)

Source: CIA and EIA, OPEC

Abdelkader Bensalah


Fortunately, as yet, the political turmoil has not upset the country’smain economic driver, petroleum production and exports. That is notto say that the country’s economic picture is healthy, but gains havebeen made over the past couple of years. According to the World Bank,Algeria’s economy is ranked as the third most important economy inthe MENA region and a leader in the Maghreb. It is one of a handfulof countries that have achieved 20% poverty reduction in the past twodecades. This was achieved by the Algerian government taking significantsteps to improve the wellbeing of its people by implementing socialpolicies in line with the United Nations Sustainable DevelopmentGoals. Among other major achievements, the country’s oil boom hasenabled the authorities to clear Algeria’s debt, invest in infrastructureprojects, and improve the country’s Human Development Indicators.

Algeria has made significant gains in each of the key HumanDevelopment Indicators (HDI). The country’s position is now 83rdoutof 188 countries, which ranks it among the highly developed cohortsin the latest Human Development Report.

Life expectancy at birth increased by 16.6 years and mean years ofschooling increased by 5.8 years. However, the costs of the underlyingsocial programs and subsidies were no longer affordable with low oilprices that hit in 2014. The continued low global oil price necessitatedchanges in the government’s economic models, which triggered adomino effect of reforms. Structural challenges began constraininggrowth for the non-hydrocarbon sector and inflation continued to rise,thus leading to the final confrontation with its unhappy citizenry.


Oil and Gas Industry

As one of Africa’s ‘Big 5’ producers, the country produces a significantamount of oil and natural gas. However, despite its petroleum largessethe country’s regulations have been hindering investment. This pastyear the government began a campaign to change its hydrocarbon laws.In June of last year Algeria hired US law firm, Curtis, Mallet-Prevost,Colt & Mosle LLP and other consultancies to help draft the legislation.It is hoped that the new energy legislation will attract much-neededinvestments into the country. According to Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour,CEO of Algeria’s Sonatrach, the new energy law was to be ready byH1 2019. Kaddour said that inspiration for the change in legislationmay come from Mexico’s energy laws. “A good model of an energylaw is Mexico’s as it allowed them to attract $300 billion in investment… definitely this is a good model and I will be very happy to havesuch a law,” Kaddour said during a visit to the Hassi R’mel gas field.He didn’t elaborate on exactly what he found attractive about Mexico’slegislation other than being impressed with the amount of investmentit attracted.

While new investors in the country’s petroleum sector have been slowin coming, Algeria does play host to just about all the major Europeanfirms and a number of Asian firms, as well as independents from aroundthe world. In mid-2018 Sonatrach, Total, Repsol and Alnaft (Algeria’sregulatory body in charge of hydrocarbons), signed a new concessioncontract for a period of 25 years to extend the exploitation of the TinFouyé Tabankort (TFT) gas and condensate field.

This new contract, which will become effective upon approval by therelevant Algerian authorities, will give Total a 26.4% interest alongsideSonatrach (51%) and Repsol (22.6%). The partners will carry out thedrilling and other activities required to develop additional reservesestimated at more than 250 million boe. These investments will allowthem to maintain the production of the field, which is currently around80,000 boepd, for six years.

Sonatrach and ENI, one of Algeria’s major producers, signed anagreement that represents a further step towards strengthening theirpartnership in the Berkine Basin. In combination with the existingassets of BRN (block 403) and MLE (block 405b), the aim is to createa gas hub in the area. The agreement, which is part of the FrameworkAgreement signed last April at the “Technical Scientific Days” eventin Oran, aims to develop an ambitious program to relaunch exploration

and development in the area, by optimizing existing infrastructuresand putting them in synergy with newer infrastructure – a 180 km linethat will quickly connect BRN with MLE’s assets, transforming it intothe Berkine Basin’s main gas hub. ENI and Sonatrach also agreed thecommercial conditions for the 2018-19 fiscal year, in line with the gasmarket. Additionally, as part of a strengthening of their cooperationand partnership, the two companies have agreed to begin a negotiationto look into extending the gas supply beyond the contractual deadlineof 2019. The two firms also agreed to further strengthen their cooperationin petrochemicals, renewables, and offshore projects in Algeria and inother international cooperation opportunities.

In October ENI signed an agreement with Sonatrach that saw ENI takea 49% stake in three concessions in the onshore North Berkine Basin.The agreement covers three areas: Sif Fatima II, Zemlet El Arbi andOurhoud II. Sonatrach will retain a 51% stake. The licenses cover atotal area of 8,500 sq km and are located near all the company’s currentproduction assets. The two firms will carry out an exploration programin order to develop the reserves on the three blocks, estimated at 145million boe. Production is expected to start by the end of 2020. Thedevelopment will benefit from synergies with existing facilities in thearea, as well as new projects and infrastructure that are currently underconstruction. These include the previously mentioned BRN/MLE gaspipeline that is being fast-tracked.

In addition to the above, ENI, Sonatrach, and Total entered into twoagreements on the sidelines of the Algeria Energy Summit. One of theagreements have the three firms teaming up to explore offshore Algeriain a virtually unexplored geological province. Algeria, despite itsneighbors having bountiful offshore resources, has seen little interestover the years in its offshore acreage. The agreement signed with ENIand Total could open up a whole new resource base for the country.

In parallel, ENI and Total will also pursue obtaining exploration permitsthat will allow for the rapid completion of an assessment of thehydrocarbon potential. In March Sonatrach’s director for New Resources,Youcef Khankar, was cited as saying the companies would be drillingon the eastern coast between Bejaia and Skikda. The explorationcampaign is slated to begin in H2 and 2D and 3D seismic surveys arecurrently underway. The targeted region for this new drilling campaigncould contain several Tcm of natural gas officials said, and initial results


from the 2D seismic campaign suggest geological similarities betweenthe east coast and Egypt’s Zohr field.

Algeria’s number one producer, US independent Anadarko Petroleum,is responsible for an estimated 310,000 boepd. In its Q4 operationsreport, the company said that production averaged 319,000 boepd withthe El Merk facility averaging 140,000 boepd. Routine statutorymaintenance was completed at the Ourhoud field early in Q1 whichrequired a shutdown of the Ourhoud facility for approximately eightdays. A produced-water treatment project commenced operation at theHBNS facility in October 2018, increasing water-handling capacityand improving long-term oil delivery. The company also saw its infilldrilling operations continue with positive results, aiding in maintainingthe oil plateau at El Merk and minimizing overall field declines atHBNS. While Anadarko has been a staple in the Algerian oil and gasscene for decades, a recent deal between the company and a majorE&P firm will see its operations taken over. Just recently it wasannounced that the independent firm was being acquired by US majorChevron Corp. Sonatrach revealed that Chevron officials would be inthe country soon to discuss operations.

Chevron is not the only big US firm to express an interest in Algeriaover the past year, ExxonMobil also began showing an interest. However,the US supermajor’s entrance stalled on the back of the North Africancountry’s anti-government protests. Sonatrach and ExxonMobil hadbeen in talks for months to develop a field in the southwestern AhnetBasin, sources close to the discussions said, according to a Reutersreport. The resignation of Bouteflika and the scheduling of new electionscould lead to the resumption of talks between Algeria and ExxonMobilonce the situation appears to have stabilized.

The Sonatrach-operated Alrar field saw a production increase in mid-2018. According to the company, the field’s production rate went from16 Mmcm/d to 24.5 Mmcm/d with the extension of the field coming

onstream. Kaddour, who was officially inaugurating the field extension,has been encouraging operators, including Sonatrach, to raise outputat aging gas fields in an effort to boost Algeria’s revenue fromhydrocarbons production. The cost of the extension at Alrar, completedthrough contracts with foreign firms Petrofac and Bonatti, was$545 million. In November Emerson, in partnership with ForesEngineering, signed a $32 million contract with Sonatrach to modernizeits gas processing plant in Alrar. As part of the contract, Emerson willcombine its innovative technologies and operational certaintymethodology to optimize Sonatrach’s production operations andimprove the reliability and security of the Alrar plant’s processes. Theproject includes the engineering procurement, commissioning andtesting of the new integrated control and safety systems, fire and gassystems, boosters and compressor controls, field instrumentation, liquidand gas metering skids, control and isolation valves, and otherequipment for improved production efficiencies, equipment reliabilityand safety.

In an additional effort to increase production on its operated fields,Sonatrach contracted Larsen & Toubro to develop three new gastreatment and compression plants on pre-existing gas fields. The contractcovers the fields of Hassi Ba Hamou, Reg Mouaded, Hassi Tidjeraneand Tinerkouk. The EPC contract comprises detailed engineeringstudies, supply management of materials for the construction, trialsand commissioning, training of personnel and operational assistance.The total cost of the project is over $1 billion and is scheduled to startoperations in June 2024.

Sonatrach also awarded Petrofac a $506 million contract to boost gasoutput at the Tinhert field by 4.7 Mmcm/d. The value was about$100 million less than originally announced. Sonatrach said thedifference in value was because part of the work had been awarded toAlgeria’s GCB. The project in the Illizi region is expected to comeonline in 36 months.

Afr i can Focus

Equinor in Algeria

Sour

ce: E

quin

or


Last year Sercel delivered a 25,000-channel 508XT land seismicacquisition system and 15 Nomad 65 Neo broadband vibrators toAlgeoland, Algeria’s leading private geophysical company. Algeolandwill deploy the Sercel equipment to conduct a major 3D seismic surveyover a 2,000 sq km area of the Rhourde-Nouss desert region in north-east Algeria, on behalf of Sonatrach.

Cepsa entered into an agreement with Malaysia’s Petronas to buyits 35% stake in the Bir El Msana oil field, located in Algeria’sBerkine Basin, 300 km east of Hassi Massaoud. The Bir El Msana

field, which started production in July 2015, currently producesaround 12,500 bpd. Cepsa recently saw the Timimoun fieldcome onstream.

BP, Sonatrach and Equinor are partners in the In Salah (BP 33.15%)and In Amenas (BP 45.89%) projects that supply gas to the domesticand European markets. In December 2017 BP and Equinor signed anextension agreement for the In Amenas PSC with Sonatrach, theAlgerian state-owned energy company. The agreement was formallyratified in April 2018.

BP operations in Algeria

Sour

ce: B

P

Downstream

The country has a host of downstream businesses, some revolvingaround oil, others around natural gas. Most recently, Sonatrach initiatedtalks with oil majors and trading firms to start a trading JV. Potentialpartners that have held talks with the state-run firm include BP, Total,Shell, Chevron, and Repsol. The company also held talks with theworld’s biggest oil trader, Vitol. Sonatrach signed a contract with Vitolto receive products in exchange for crude, its first such deal in decades,and in May 2018 agreed to buy Exxon’s 175,000 bpd Augusta refineryin Sicily. Sonatrach’s aim at founding this venture is reportedly tosupply crude to the Italian refinery and help manage the sale ofoil products such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel to Algeria andother markets.

In H2 2018 Sonatrach signed a contract with Maire Technimont for anLPG Train. Maire Tecnimont was provisionally awarded the contractworth $248 million to build a LPG train at the Hassi Messaoud field.The EPC contract is for the LPG Train 4, ZCINA, and will beimplemented in the existing ZCINA facility. The new train will havea capacity of 8 Mmcm/d of LPG and condensate extraction fromassociated gas being pumped from existing plants near the ZCINAfacility. The project is slated to be completed within 30 months fromthe construction commencement date.

Sonatrach contracted China Harbor Engineering Company (CHEC)for port installations and a terminal for LNG, according to the state-run news agency, APS. Under the $455 million contract, CHEC willprovide studies of and set up a terminal for LNG and build marine andharbor infrastructure for a fuel terminal in Skikda. The project, whichis expected to take over two years to complete, allows for theupgrade of LNG production to 220,000 cubic meters per day and theloading of large capacity methane tankers between 50,000 and250,000 tons. Part of Sonatrach’s 2030 Strategy, the construction ofa new LNG terminal and the expansion of the oil terminal at Skikda,will allow the company to increase its production and open up to moreinternational markets.

On the refining end, Sonatrach will use Honeywell UOP technologiesto produce 200,000 metric tons per year of methyl tert-butyl ether(MTBE), a high-octane gasoline additive that reduces emissions inautomobile exhaust. Honeywell will provide technology licensing,design services, key equipment and state-of-the-art catalysts andadsorbents for the project at Sonatrach’s refinery in Arzew. Includedin the technology package is UOP’s Butamer™ technology, whichisomerizes normal butane into isobutane. The package also includesa UOP C4 Oleflex™ unit to dehydrogenate isobutane into isobutylene.


C4 Oleflex features low energy consumption, low emissions and afully recyclable, platinum-alumina-based catalyst system whichminimizes environmental impact. This results in a lower cash cost ofproduction, and higher return on investment than competing technologies.The contract further includes a UOP Ethermax™ unit that convertsisobutylene and methanol into a high-octane MTBE blending agentthat contains no benzene or aromatics.

In late-2018 Algeria entered into a $6-billion phosphate JV dealwith a Chinese firm to build a phosphate plant in Tebessa province.The JV deal is between Sonatrach, Algerian firms Manal andAsmidal and Chinese state-owned consortium CITIC Group Corp.According to Sonatrach, the plant is set to come online in 2022 andcreate 3,000 jobs. The project plans to expand the output of theBled El-Hadba phosphate mine in the eastern region of Tebessafrom 1 million tons annually to 10 million tons. Sonatrach will holda 51% share of the project while the Chinese partners have a49% stake.

Algeria’s natural gas export pipeline, the Medgaz, could see itsthroughput increased. According to reports, Sonatrach is looking toexpand the pipeline’s export capacity on its 8 Bcm/year pipeline, whilealso maintaining supplies through the GME link via Morocco. The

feedstock for the boost in exports will come from a number of new gasprojects that will be brought onstream in the coming years. Sonatrachbegan construction work in September on a new 200-km pipeline thatcan divert gas away from the GME pipeline into Medgaz, but Sonatrachsaid this did not necessarily mean transit via Morocco would cease —rather that it would give the company more flexibility and optionalityin its exports to Spain. The new pipeline will run from El-Aricha onthe border between Algeria and Morocco to Beni-Saf, the starting pointof the Medgaz pipeline, creating a new “loop” between the export lines.In order to be able to move gas in that direction, however, thecapacity of Medgaz will also need to be expanded. According to aSonatrach engineering source, with the addition of more turbo-compressors, the Medgaz capacity could then be further expanded to16 Bcm/year by 2020.The new link is expected to be completed bySeptember 2020.

Talk of a pipeline from Nigeria to Algeria is making the rounds again.In March the head of Nigeria’s NNPC, Maikanti Baru, said the state-run firm was considering the extending the ongoing Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline system across the Sahara to Algeria. NNPCindicated more than six months ago that it was working with aChinese consortium to finalize the term sheet for financing of the AKKpipeline project.

Turbo compressors on the Medgaz pipeline in Beni Saf

Sour

ce: M

edga

z


hat is now Cameroon saw European ‘visitors’ on its shoresas early the 1500s in the form of the Portuguese, however,malaria prevented any significant European settlement

or colonialization in the interior until the late 1870s. The early Europeanpresence in Cameroon was primarily devoted to coastal trade.

In mid-1884, all of present-day Cameroon and parts of several of itsneighbors became a German colony. Unlike with some other colonialmasters, Germany invested in infrastructure in its colony, such asextensive railways and hospitals. Unfortunately, to see these projectsto fruition the Germans instigated the forced labor system. DuringWorld War I the British invaded Cameroon from Nigeria, ousting theGermans by early-2016. Following the war, the colony of Cameroonwas partitioned between Britain and France. France gained the largergeographical share, while Britain’s territory was a strip borderingNigeria from the sea to Lake Chad.

In 1958 French Cameroon was granted self-government with AhmadouAhidjo as prime minister. In 1960 the country became fully independentwith Ahidjo as president. Ahidjo served as president from 1960 to1982. He presided over one of the few successful attempts at Africanunity; the joining of the southern half of the former British Cameroonwith the larger, French-speaking Cameroon. In 1982 Ahidjo wassucceeded by Cameroon’s current president, Paul Biya.

President Biya is Africa’s oldest head of state, having been in powersince 1982. In 2008 parliament amended the constitution to allow Biya

to run for a third term in 2011. The opposition condemned the moveas a “constitutional coup” but Biya still ran in 2011, winning with 78%of the vote. Recently Biya secured a seventh term in office despitecredible allegations of vote rigging, electoral fraud, and targeted threatsof violence against opponents. Biya was declared the winner in theOctober 2018 election with 71.28% of the vote. Maurice Kamto, theopposition leader who had declared himself the winner a few hoursafter the polls closed, refused to attend the declaration ceremony afterhis party was said to have taken just 14% of the vote.

According to reports, the voter turnout was 54%, far lower than inprevious elections. It was just 10% in English-speaking regions whererebels have been fighting a bitter battle for secession since their demandsfor English speakers to be appointed in courts and schools have beenbrutally suppressed by the authorities.

Kamto’s campaign manager said: “We don’t recognize Biya as thepresident of the republic. We want Cameroonians to know that thingswill start happening now. We wouldn’t take this lying down.” Kamtowas subsequently charged by a military court with rebellion, insurrectionand “hostility to the homeland,” after his political party stagedpeaceful protests in several of Cameroon’s major cities. Having beenarrested in January, as of March 25 Kamto was still being detained bythe government.

On the economic end Cameroon is tagged as a lower-middle-incomecountry. The country is endowed with rich natural resources, including

W

By Jennifer Nickle, Deputy Editor

Afr i can Focus

Politics & Economy

CAMEROONCAMEROON

President: Paul Biya(since November 1982)Independence:January 1960 (from French-administered UN trusteeship)Population: 25,640,965(July 2018 est.)GDP (purchasing power parity):$89.54 billion (2017 est.)GDP - real growth rate: 3.5% (2017 est.)GDP - per capita (PPP): $3,700 (2017 est.)Director General of SNH: Adolphe MoudikiOil - production: 75,200 bpd (2017)Oil - consumption: 45,000 bpd (2016 est.)Oil - proved reserves: 200 million barrels (2017)Natural gas - production:910.4 million cu m(2017 est.)Natural gas – consumption:906.1 million cu m(2017 est.)Natural gas - proved reserves:135.1 billion cu m(1 January 2018 est.)

Source: CIA FactBook

UN

pho

to

Paul Biya


oil and gas, minerals, high-value species of timber, and agriculturalproducts, such as coffee, cotton, cocoa, maize, and cassava. Despitethis abundance of riches, the country’s poverty reduction rate is laggingbehind its population growth rate, and poverty is increasinglyconcentrated, with 56% of the poor living in the northern regions.

Cameroon is experiencing an economic crisis triggered by its relianceon its income earned through oil exports. It has, therefore, had to putfiscal adjustment measures in place to adjust to the terms of trade shockand restore macro-stability and confidence in the common currency.

On a more positive note, growth in Cameroon accelerated in the firstquarter of 2018 and while the numbers for the year are not in yet, GDPis expected to reach 3.8% for the year. While the drop in oil prices theindustry has experienced since 2014 hurt its economy, natural gas istaking up the slack that oil has left. The expected GDP rebound for2018 is mostly driven by an increase in natural gas, with a new liquefiednatural gas (LNG) offshore terminal coming online.

The economy is also being aided by an uptick in agriculture, boostedby stronger demand from neighboring Chad, CAR, and Nigeria; andthe start of public works preparations for the 2019 Africa football cup.Unfortunately, Cameroon was stripped of hosting the 2019 Africa Cupof Nations due to infrastructural delays, the Boko Haram insurgencyand the Anglophone Crisis. Cameroon is looking to become an upper-middle-income country by 2035, however, to achieve this the WorldBank’s Country Economic Memorandum said Cameroon will need to

increase productivity and unleash the potential of its private sector.

Specifically, Cameroon’s real GDP will have to grow by roughly 8%(or 5.7% per capita) over the period to 2035, which in turn will requirethe investment share of GDP to increase from about 20% in 2015 to30% in 2035, and productivity growth to reach 2% over the same periodfrom its average zero growth rate over the past decade. These challenges,though daunting, can be met.

The public expenditure review published by the World Bank in February2018 proposes five ways to achieve these goals: 1) get the macrofundamentals right, with authorities needing to commit tomacroeconomic and fiscal discipline; 2) reduce debt and manage publicinvestment well, which includes better management of state-ownedenterprises and public investment; 3) improve efficiency in the educationsector, with a direct funding mechanism; 4) spend more and spendbetter in health, with the government needing to rebalance the distributionof health resources; and 5) strengthen social protection and safety netsystem, by altering the composition of expenditures to develop socialassistance.

Hindering it from achieving these goals is the fact that Cameroonsuffers from weak governance, which thwarts development and thecountry’s ability to attract investment. According to TransparencyInternational’s 2018 corruption perception index, Cameroon ranked152nd out of 180 countries, and 163rd out of 190 economies in theWorld Bank’s Doing Business 2018 report.


Oil and Gas IndustryThe hunt for petroleum resources started in Cameroon in 1947, withthe first commercial discoveries in the Rio Del Rey Basin coming inthe early 1970s. Cameroon became an oil producer in 1977 when theKole field was put on production. Production reached a record levelof 186 000 barrels per day (bpd) in 1985. However, beginning in 1986,when the “oil price collapse” occurred, it began to decline. Facedwith this situation, incentive measures aimed at revivingexploration/production activities were taken by the government. Thanksto the said measures, and efforts made by the state-run firm SNH tocheck the decline, international oil companies began showing renewedinterest in Cameroon’s mining domain.

At the beginning of 2018, the country’s petroleum sector was comprisedof seven exclusive exploration permits, 19 exclusive mining concessionsand/or authorizations, two blocks under negotiation, and eight freeblocks. As part of its measures to stop the production decline, SNHlaunched a licensing round in 2018. The licensing round offered eightblocks; the Bomana, Bolongo, and Bakassi, in the Reo Del Rey Basin;and the Etinde, Ntem, Elombo, Tilapia, and Kombe/Nsepe in theDouala/Kribi-Campo Basin. CGG entered into an agreement with SNH,to promote enhanced multi-client E&P data packages and interpretativeproducts, in support of the licensing round.

Over the past year or so the company has seen an increase in exploration,a discovery or two, and became an LNG producer. Cameroon playshost to a number of global independents. At this time, the bulk of itsproduction comes from one independent however, Perenco out of

France. The company hasbeen in the West Africancountry for over 25 years andhas a number of explorationand production assets, as wellas supporting infrastructure.In 2018 Perenco produced anaverage of 85,000 barrels ofoil equivalent per day (boepd),51,000 bpd of oil and 24Mmcm/d of gas . Thecompany operates two FSOs(Float ing Storage andOffloading Units): La Lobe, to stockpile Ebome crude oil and FSOMassongo, a 272,000 dwt oil tanker converted into a storage unit forLokele and Kole crude oils.

Perenco manages four production sharing contracts (PSCs), with twoof the four already in production; the Dissoni and the Sanaga. Theother two, the Elombo and the Moabi, are in the exploratory stage. InJanuary 2018, Glencore sold Perenco a 50% share of its stake in theBolongo Block, making the French firm the operator. According toSNH, the transfer of rights was part of the Oak field development andproduction project. One year later the application for the exploitationof the block was given the green light by SNH through a presidentialdecree on January 8. The license is valid for 20 years and renewablefor one period of 10 years.

FSO Massongo offshore CameroonSo

urce

: Per

enco


In February of this year, the company signed a PSC for the Bomanablock. The block is located in the Rio del Rey Basin. Under the PSC,Perenco will be required to carry out exploration activities on theBomana block for a firm initial period of three years. The minimumworks program includes geo scientific studies, reprocessing of 3Dseismic data over the entire block and drilling of an exploration well.The minimum financial commitment for this exploration program is$12.5 million. Depending on the results obtained during the first phaseof exploration, the company will be entitled to two renewals of itsExclusive Exploration Authorization for two additional periods of twoyears each, during which it is planned, for each of the periods, thedrilling of one exploration well.

Perenco also operates gas projects and was part of one of Cameroon’smost ambitious developments to date, a liquified natural gas (LNG)development. The Sanaga was the first offshore gas field to be developedin Cameroon. It was developed to feed the Kribi power station and tomeet the growing demand for electricity in the country. The firm alsomade Cameroon the latest African LNG producer. Perenco broughtAfrica’s first floating LNG (FLNG) project onstream when the HilliEpiseyo came online. In September 2015, Perenco and the SNH signeda 10-year gas agreement with Golar LNG, with the aim to developSanaga’s remaining gas reserves for the domestic market and LNG forexport. The project began commercial operations in mid-2018, comingonline $70 million under budget.

T h e H i l l iEpiseyo FLNGv e s s e l w a sconverted froman aging tankerfor $1.2 billion.It is the first inthe world to beaccomplishedthrough this typeof conversion.The vessel beganproducing LNG

on March 12, 2018 and exported its first cargo in May to China, aftertechnical issues delayed a ramp up in production. Golar, in a statementat the time, said the commissioning tests included the requirement toproduce a set quantity of LNG in a period of 16 days of continuousproduction from minimum two trains at a level of 7,500 cubic metersper day on average. After the commissioning tests the facility wasaccepted by Perenco and SNH. The facility receives excess productionfrom Sanaga field as its feedstock. All of the plant’s 1.2-million-tonannual output was sold, via a competitive tender, by Perenco to GazpromMarketing & Trading for eight years.

Tower Resources had a busy period in Cameroon on the Thali PSC,where it holds 100% interest. Tower was awarded the PSC in September2015 and was granted an extension to the Initial Exploration Period toSeptember 15 of this year. The Thali Block has the potential to holdat least four distinct play systems, including two established plays inwhich three discovery wells (Rumpi-1, Njonji-1 and Njonji-2) havealready been drilled on the Block. Tower awarded a contract to Oilfield

International Ltd. (OIL) to act as Competent Person and prepare aReserves Report in respect to the Thali license in April 2018. Thecontract covers a review of Tower’s work on the Thali license to date,including historical well data and regional datasets. The preliminaryreprocessed 3D seismic data, which Tower received from DMT wasincorporated into the Reserves Report. The report, released in November2018, identified gross mean contingent resources of 18 million barrels(Mmbbl) of oil across the proven Njonji-1 and Njonji-2 fault blockswith low/best/high estimates of 5/15/34 Mmbbls respectively and adevelopment contingency probability of 80% on the first phase and70% on the second phase.

Most recently, Tower Resources secured a rig to drill in the Thali. Thecompany signed a contract with Vantage Drilling International for useof the Topaz Driller jack-up rig. The rig will be used to drill Tower’sNJOM-3 well, targeting gross mean contingent (2C) resources of 18million barrels across the Njonji-1 and Njonji-2 fault blocks. Furthermore,the NJOM-3 well is expected to de-risk an additional 20 million barrelsof gross mean prospective resources across Njonji South and NjonjiSouth-West. The objectives of the NJOM-3 well are to test the thicknessof reservoirs already identified by NJOM-1 and also to test for otherreservoirs which may be present at the new location. It will also providekey flow-rate data for the Njonji reservoirs from a drill stem test (DST),which would allow reclassification of contingent resources into 2Preserves as well as providing critical reservoir characterization datafor the potential field development strategy. The well is expected tospud in Q2.

Bowleven plc holds stakes in two blocks in Cameroon, the Bomonowith 100% interest and the Etinde Permit partnered with Lukoil andoperator New Age Global Energy. The Bomono Permit is located inthe onshore extension of the Douala Basin. During Bowleven’s firstexploration phase, the company acquired 500 km of 2D seismic anda full set of surface samples for geochemical analysis. Bowlevenconducted an extensive update to the interpretation, mapping andvolumetrics; evaluation of the data revealed multiple prospects andleads with both Tertiary and Cretaceous aged targets identified. Twoexploration wells have been completed by the company to date, theMoambe and Zingana wells, both encountering hydrocarbons. Followingextended well tests on the shallower reservoirs on the wells, both eresuspended pending development. In January 2017 a two-year extensionwas awarded and a Provisional Exploitation Authorization (PEA) wasagreed on in principal.

On the Etinde PermitBowleven, Lukoil,and New Age drilledthe first of twoappra i s a l we l l sduring 2018. TheIM-6 commenceddrilling in May usingthe Topaz Driller.The well had theprimary objective ofdelineating the size of the Intra Isongo-aged 410 channel sand package.The location of the well was tweaked to allow the stratigraphically

Afr i can Focus

The FLNG vessel Hilli Episeyo

Sour

ce: G

olar

LN

G

Topaz Driller offshore Cameroon drillingfor New Age and partners

Sour

ce: N

ew A

ge


higher 510 and lower 310 channel sand packages to be tagged assecondary targets. Drilling was complete in mid-August with mixedresults. Two of the targeted sands, the 410 and the 510, had gas andcondensate shows but they were water bearing. The gas logging datacollected in the 310 intra-Isongo showed gas during drilling. Well logdata and reservoir fluid samples taken provide a good indication that,the Middle Isongo sections in particular, are of interest as the twohorizons both show condensate-rich reservoir fluid samples.

Based on the results from the IM-6, the partners decided to skip overthe drilling of the IM-7 well and relocated the rig to the backup locationof the IE-4 well. The IE-4 targeted previously undrilled sand packages,“Drillbit and Crowbar” of Intra-Isongo origin, which is believed to beanalogous to the 410 sand package at the IM-5 location. Drilling ofthe IE-4 well was completed in Q4 with the primary target, Drillbit,structurally higher than the lower, Crowbar sand package, whichpartially sits below and to the west of Drillbit. Initial interpretation ofthe data showed that the Drillbit sands were water saturated and theCrowbar data suggests that the Crowbar 410 sand package is partiallyhydrocarbon charged. In addition, an unprognosed sequence of thinlybedded high porosity sand horizons of about 30 meters gross thicknesswas drilled some 50 meters above the Drillbit 410 sand package. Fluidsampling showed the sands to be light-oil saturated.

Since the partners ended the drilling program, they have continued toundertake an analysis of the data collected on the IM-6 and the IE-4.The analysis program is aimed at extracting the maximum technicalvalue from the two wells and then updating and revising the geologicaland structural models of the IM and IE fields, with initial priority beinggiven to the IM field. Once data analysis and interpretation are completed,the revised geological model will be used to update the IM and IE fielddevelopment models and to determine the JV’s view of the license’sresources. Alongside this technical data update, the JV partners arerunning two parallel work streams. One comprises commencing orcontinuing commercial discussions regarding gas sales, while the otheris focused on engineering design studies for the proposed liquids-baseddevelopment of the IM field.

Victoria Oil andGas, through itsC a m e r o o n i a nsubsidiary Gaz duCameroun (GDC),is the only onshoreproducer in thec o u n t r y. G D Cp r o d u c e s asignificant amountof gas onshoref o r d o m e s t i c

consumption from its Logbaba concession. In late-Q4 2018 GDCcompleted the drilling of the La-107 and La-108 wells; the La-107 isnow a production well. The company is in the process of finalizing awell plan for the La-108 to complete the clean-up and testing of theLower Logbaba Sands. This includes recovery of the spent perforationgun. The company’s production was consumed by offtakers at an

average rate of 9.6 Mmscf/d. The company’s production goes to anumber of thermal and industrial customers. Cameroon’s state-runutility, ENEO is also an offtaker of GDC’s gas. ENEO had halted itsconsumption of GDC gas in early 2018 however, shipments of gasresumed to the company on December 22. Currently, about 56% ofGDC’s production is consumed by ENEO.

GDC also holds a stake in the Matanda Block, receiving a PresidentialDecree authorizing the transfer of interest in the Matanda PSC licenseassigned from Glencore in early-2016. The approval was granted inDecember 2018. The terms of the assignment included the transfer byGlencore of 75% of its participating interest in the PSC to GDC and15% of its participating interest to AFEX, who previously held a 10%interest. SNH has a 25% back in right after an Exploitation License isgranted. As consideration for the assignment, GDC became operatorand assumed responsibility for carrying out the work program agreedto with the government.

The agreed obligation for the Matanda work program is one explorationand appraisal well plus reprocessing of existing seismic in the firsttwo-year period of the PSC. Matanda is highly prospective for naturalgas and gas condensate. It contains the previously discovered offshoreNorth Matanda Field with current 2C recoverable gas resources of 150Bcf Gross, 6 million barrels of condensate and upside of 1 Tcf of gas.In addition, there are further onshore prospective resources of 1,303Bcf of gas contained in 23 identified prospects and leads. GDC andAFEX will focus on the onshore prospects located within a fewkilometers of the adjacent Logbaba concession. The close proximityof the existing Logbaba gas pipeline network will also allow for newdiscoveries on Matanda to deliver additional natural gas to industrialusers in Cameroon.

In H2 2018, GDC entered into an exclusive agreement with the Turkishfirm, Naturelgaz Sanayi, as part of its project to produce and distributeCNG. Under the agreement, the Turkish firm will design, build andoperate CNG infrastructure and solutions initially in GDC’s homemarket of Cameroon with the intention of rolling this out into otherAfrican countries. Naturelgaz will also market in Cameroon, the CNGproduced by GDC for companies and businesses that need off-grid andoff-pipeline energy solutions, as well as CNG for alternative mobilitysolutions. The two parties are undertaking to produce and operate, ina first phase, 2 Mmcf/d of CNG.

Other than the FLNG project on the downstream end, the Camerooncoast is the end destination for the Chad/Cameroon Pipeline. Thecompany’s focus on the pipeline over the last year revolved around themonitoring of the operation and maintenance of the pipeline. SNHreported that the volume of oil lifted from the pipeline increased,however the transit fees declined slightly due to the fall in the US dollarrate. Cameroon Oil Transportation Company (COTCO), whichmanages the Chad-Cameroon oil pipeline on behalf of the government,said in November 2018 that it planned to double the volumes of crudeoil transported through the line by 2022. The increase in volume willcome from newly discovered fields in Chad. There is also the possibilityof oil being shipped through the pipeline from Niger if a pipeline isbuilt to connect Nigerien oilfields to the pipeline in Chad.


Logbaba well La-107 flow test gas flare

Sour

ce: V

icto

ria

Oil

and

Gas



MARKET MOVERS

Chevron to Acquire Anadarkoin Mega Billion TransactionIn one of the most high-profile acquisitions inrecent years, Chevron Corp. entered into adefinitive agreement with Anadarko PetroleumCorp. to acquire all of the outstanding shares ofAnadarko in a stock and cash transaction valuedat $33 billion, or $65 per share. Based onChevron’s closing price on April 11 and underthe terms of the agreement, Anadarko shareholders will receive 0.3869 shares of Chevronand $16.25 in cash for each Anadarko share.The total enterprise value of the transaction is$50 billion.

The acquisition of Anadarko will significantlyenhance Chevron’s already advantaged Upstreamportfolio and further strengthen its leadingpositions in large, attractive shale, deepwater andnatural gas resource basins.

The deal is a strong strategic fit withAnadarko’s assets enhancing Chevron’sportfolio across a diverse set of asset classes,including shale and tight gas, deepwater, andLNG. On the shale and tight gas end thecombination of the two companies will create a75-mile-wide corridor across the mostattractive acreage in the Delaware basin,extending Chevron’s leading position as aproducer in the Permian.

The combination will also enhance Chevron’sexisting high-margin position in the deepwaterGulf of Mexico, where it is already a leadingproducer, and extend its deepwater infrastructurenetwork. On the LNG side, Chevron gains anotherworld-class resource base in Mozambique tosupport growing LNG demand. Area 1 is a verycost-competitive and well-prepared greenfieldproject close to major markets.

African Petroleumto Combine with PetroNorAfrican Petroleum Corp. entered into anagreement to combine with PetroNor E&P Ltdfor an all-share consideration of around 816million shares in African Petroleum. PetroNoris a privately owned, Africa focused E&Pindependent, that holds a 10.5% indirect interestin the Republic of Congo’s PNGF Sud fields(PNGF Sud) and the right to negotiate entry intoa 14.7% indirect interest in an exploration licensecovering the PNGF Bis fields.

Subject to shareholder approval, and certain othercustomary conditions, African Petroleum will atcompletion of the transaction change its name toPetroNor E&P Limited.

The transaction is recommended unanimouslyby African Petroleum’s Board of Directors andexecutive management holding shares in thecompany have provided their pre-commitmentto vote in favor of the transaction at a generalmeeting expected to be held in April.

The combining of the two companies givesAfrican Petroleum diversified, low risk, long lifeand high-quality producing assets, with currentnet (working interest) production of around 2,300bpd and medium-term exploration upside in awell-established operating jurisdiction.

The PetroNor team has extensive experiencedoing business in Africa, which, together withAfrican Petroleum’s public platform, will be usedto grow the company into a leading Africa-focusedE&P independent.

PetroNor’s subsidiary, Hemla E&P Congo, wasawarded a 20% participating interest in the PNGFSud in the bid round organized by the ROC’sMinistry of Hydrocarbons in September 2016.The license is operated by Perenco and iscurrently producing in excess of 20,000 bpd ofcrude. The license contains the Tchendo,Tchibouella, Tchibouela Est, Tchibeli and Litanziproducing fields.

Eland’s Increased Borrowing BaseEland Oil & Gas announced a new accordionfacility and increased borrowing base. InNovember 2018, the company announced that ithad successfully refinanced its existingreserve-based lending facility (the RBL facility)with a new five-year syndicated RBL facility inan amount of $75 million, with the option toincrease it to up to $200 million via anaccordion, subject to incremental productionand reserves.

Eland said that following a redetermination, theborrowing base amount has increased from $103million to $134 million and an initial accordionincrease of $50 million is being underwritten byStandard Bank of South Africa Limited andStanbic IBTC Bank PLC, resulting in thecommitments under the facility increasing from$75 million to $125 million. Of the commitments,$50 million is currently drawn.

AVEVA Adds to its APM PortfolioAVEVA made a significant addition to itscomprehensive Asset Performance Management(APM) portfolio with the acquisition of thesoftware assets of MaxGrip, subject to approvalfrom MaxGrip’s shareholders. MaxGrip, anAVEVA partner since 2017, is a pioneer in

optimizing asset performance with ReliabilityCentered Maintenance (RCM) solutions.

The combination of AVEVA’s portfolio with thecapabilities of MaxGrip enables customers torealize high levels of reliability, availability,safety and efficiency in the operations of theircapital assets and closes the loop on managingfault scenarios with prescribed remediationactions based on best practices, moving fromreactive and predictive maintenance toprescriptive maintenance.

Petroleum Academy to Open in SenegalDer Mond Group, out of Abu Dhabi, secured apartnership with Iota Group out of Switzerland,to open a petroleum academy in Dakar, Senegal.The academy will offer training programs andworkshops at level with international standardsin the energy industry and more specifically inthe oil and gas value chain.

The establishment of the academy is aimed atsupporting the state of Senegal in increasing thenumber of qualified and certified localprofessionals, subsequently providing jobs forthe Senegalese youth. The academy’s regionaloffice will be in Dakar, with offices set toopen in Mali, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Conakry, andCote d’Ivoire.

The academy’s first goal is to provide an industrialsecurity certification course in order to establisha long-presence of certified professionals readyto tackle high-level challenges requested byoperators, contractors and suppliers present inSenegal. Techma, a subsidiary of Iota Group, willprovide its expertise, skills and training programsas well as qualified teachers.

Lincoln ElectricAcquires Baker IndustriesLincoln Electric Holdings acquired BakerIndustries, Inc. Baker is a privately held Michigan-based provider of custom tooling, parts andfixtures primarily serving automotive andaerospace markets. Baker has extensive in-housedesign and manufacturing capabilities, includingmachining, fabricating, assembly and additivemanufacturing. Their operations adhere tostringent aerospace quality management standardsand are AS9100D certified and Nadcap accredited.

Sour

ce: I

ota

Gro

up



Lincoln Electrics’s new metal additivemanufacturing service will launch in mid-2019and provide large scale metal printing of industrialparts, tooling and prototypes for customers.

The Baker organization will complement LincolnElectric’s automation portfolio and its new metaladditive manufacturing service business that willlaunch in mid-2019. Leveraging Lincoln Electric’score competencies in automation, softwaredevelopment and metallurgy, the new metaladditive business will manufacture large-scaleprinted metal parts, prototypes and tooling forindustrial and aerospace customers. The Bakeroperation, along with a new Cleveland, Ohio-based additive manufacturing development center,will provide an additive manufacturing platformto help customers improve their lead times,designs and quality in their operations.

ExxonMobil Announces PowerPlay Awards Highlighting Women in LNGWhat started as a series of ExxonMobilnetworking events promoting diversity in theliquefied natural gas (LNG) industry, has nowgrown into an awards program. This is designedto recognize and celebrate the accomplishmentsof remarkable women and the men who upholdthe importance of supporting and empoweringthem in the industry.

The key objectives behind the awards are to shinea light on the newcomers and smaller players inthe LNG value chain, in particular, encouragingnominations from resource holders, buyers,partners and FSRU providers.The three award categories are:· The Rising Star – presented to an outstanding

female professional under the age of 35· The Vanguard – given to a male or female

professional who displays outstandingleadership

· The Rainmaker - awarded to a femaleprofessional who has delivered exceptionalvalue and business results.

Anyone is welcome to submit a nomination, butall nominees must be employed within the LNGvalue chain. Award nominations must besubmitted by July 15, 2019. A panel of six judgeswill determine three finalists for each of the awardcategories. Once finalists are announced, the LNGcommunity will have the opportunity to vote ontheir chosen candidates. Winners for each categorywill be determined by a combination of the finaljudges’ scores and community votes.

Presented by ExxonMobil, the first-ever PowerPlay Awards will be awarded at the Gastech

Exhibition and Conference scheduled forSeptember 18, 2019.

Delta Controls Acquires the MobreyRange of Instruments from EmersonDelta Controls signed an agreement to purchasethe Mobrey line of measurement productsmanufactured in Slough, UK from Emerson, theU.S.-headquartered global technology andengineering company.

To ensure a smooth transfer of the Mobrey-branded products over to Delta Controls, thetransaction will involve a two-step process:Emerson has designated Delta Controls as theexclusive global distributor for the Mobreyproduct lines, commencing on April 1, 2019; andthe official transfer of Mobrey (employees,inventory, intellectual property, product approvals,etc.) to Delta Controls will take place no laterthan September 30, 2019.

The new enlarged Delta business will offercustomers a wider range of leadinginstrumentation products from a single supplierand, importantly, a long-term commitment tosupport these brands and technologies. DeltaControls has seventy years’ experience in thedesign and manufacture of temperature, pressureand flow process control and alarm-basedinstrumentation, with particular expertise inhazardous area applications.

Unique Group toExclusively Represent Add EnergyUnique Group entered into a key agreement withAdd Energy Asset & Integrity Management toprovide asset and maintenance managementconsultancy and software solutions to energy andmanufacturing companies in the UAE.

Over the past 30 years, Norway-headquarteredAdd Energy has confirmed its position as a trustedservice provider to the energy industry. Throughthis collaboration, Unique Group will offer clientsspecialised engineering solutions designed toincrease safety, optimize expenditure andmaximize plant performance.

The combination of consultancy and softwaresolutions will mainly focus on performanceanalysis , CMMS data improvements ,maintenance optimisation, materials managementand operational support. As a business, AddEnergy has a significant track record ofdelivering results in safety assurance, equipmentreliability and uptime to clients includingShell, BP, E. ON, TAQA and other globalenergy providers.

BP Partners with AlgerianNational Paralympic CommitteeBP Algeria signed an agreement with the AlgerianNational Paralympic Committee (ANPC) whichsees it become a top-level partner and the officialoil, gas and energy partner through to the Tokyo2020 Paralympic Games. BP is the first oil andgas business to become an official partner ofthe ANPC.

A signing ceremony was held at theBritish Embassy in Algiers. The Tokyo 2020Paralympics is due to be held from August 25 toSeptember 6.

BP has been a partner of the ParalympicMovement since 2008 and is an official partnerof the IPC. The IPC renewed its partnership withBP for another four years in September 2016,during that year’s Paralympic Games in Rio deJaneiro. BP became a partner of London 2012and from there started to partner with NationalParalympic Committees (NPCs).

BP has supported a number of NPCs, includingthose of Angola, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Georgia,Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Senegal,Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, theUnited Arab Emirates and the United States.

Savannah Updates Seven Energy DealSavannah Petroleum updated its transactionwith Seven Energy. The company said that goodprogress on the remaining transaction workstreamscontinues. Following the completion of the recentNigerian election process, Savannah remainsconfident that Ministerial Consent will beforthcoming shortly.

Savannah now expects that the transaction willcomplete during Q2 2019, and the publication ofa Supplemental Admission Document will followin due course. Further updates relating to theTransaction will be published as appropriate.

Egypt Continues toPay Down Dana G DebtDana Gas received a payment of $19 millionfrom its operations in Egypt. This payment is

Sour

ce: B

P


MARKET MOVERS

made up of a $10 million payment from thegovernment in Egyptian pounds and $9.0 millionfrom the sale of a shipment of El Wastanicondensate.

The payment is part of the Egyptian government’songoing efforts to reduce their payables positionto zero in 2019.

In 2018, the company made good progress inreducing its outstanding balance of overdue debt.At the end of 2018, the net payables positionreduced by 39% to $140 million, the lowest levelsince 2011.

Mozambique Backs ENH EurobondsThe government of Mozambique will grant aState endorsement on the issue of Eurobonds byoil company ENH in order to guarantee itsparticipation in natural gas projects, according toan Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) report.

ENH has a 15% stake in the Area 1 block, led bythe Anadarko Petroleum group, and itsinvolvement in the financing of the project isestimated at $2 billion, which the company intendsto raise in international markets.

The EIU writes in its latest report on Mozambiquethat the project is financially secure, supportedby credible oil companies, is transparent and hasbeen approved by the Mozambican parliament.

Sovereign Wealth Fund for MozambiqueThe government of Mozambique plans to establisha sovereign wealth fund to manage income fromfuture gas production, according to PresidentFilipe Nyusi during a speech given in Maputo onMarch 27. The country will also allocate a fixedportion of revenue to the state budget to fundinfrastructure development, poverty reduction,and economic diversification.

International operators like Anadarko Petroleumand ENI are developing the massive natural gasreservoirs discovered offshore the East Africancountry in the Rovuma Basin through an onshoreLNG scheme and an offshore FLNG vessel.

“Savings will serve as a cushion when gas pricesare low,” Nyusi said. The state should managethe funds to avoid effects like Dutch Disease,he said, referring to the phenomenon in whicha commodity boom makes a country’s currency

more expensive and its other goods lesscompetitive.

Nyusi said it is estimated that the Rovuma Basin,where Anadarko and other operators are present,may contain 270 Tcf of natural gas. The USindependent is planning to take the FID on the$20-billion project by June. ExxonMobil Corp.plans to make a decision on an even bigger LNGproject in the same area by the end of the year.

Weatherford Sells Rigs in MENAWeatherford International closed on the last offour deals to sell its drilling rigs in the MiddleEast and North Africa. Weatherford closed a$32 million deal to sell four of the company’sdrilling rigs in Algeria and Iraq.

The firm has been selling its Middle Easterndrilling rig subsidiary Precision Drilling ServicesSaudi Arabia, or PDSSA, to Dubai-based ADESInternational Holding Ltd. in four phases.

ADES agreed to buy PDSSA in a $287.5 milliondeal that was announced in July 2018. Structuredinto a series of four closings, the first deal closedin November, the second one closed in Decemberand the third in February.

Combined, the four deals included the sale of 31land-based drilling rigs, contracts and 2,300employees and contract personnel.

Inpector Capital AcquiresScimitar Production EgyptInpector Capital BV acquired Scimitar ProductionEgypt Ltd., gaining a foothold in Egypt’s oil, gasand energy sectors. Inpector is well prepared toconduct long term projects, Corné Melissen, thecompany’s spokesman said, underlining his fullconfidence in the new management team ofScimitar. The company considers the acquisitionof Scimitar as the first step towards new prolificinvestments, Melissen noted.

The company appointed Erik Vollebregt asExecutive Chairman of Scimitar ProductionEgypt. Previously, Vollebregt had served as thecommercial and finance director of Shell Nigeria.Scimitar is a private sector exploration andproduction company operating in Egypt throughIssaran concession, in which it owns 100% ofits operation rights. The company’s currentproduction rate has reached 2,200 bpd of oil.

Soco Completes Merlon Petroleum BuySoco International completed the acquisition ofMerlon Petroleum El Fayum Company fromMerlon International. As previously announced,SOCO agreed to acquire Merlon in considerationfor approximately $136 million in cash and theissue of 65,561,041 new SOCO ordinaryshares to the seller. Prior to their issuance,the consideration shares represented 19.75%.of SOCO’s issued share capital or 16.49%.of SOCO’s issued share capital as enlarged bythe consideration shares. Merlon has agreed topay an assignment fee in respect of thet ransact ion to Egypt’s s ta te- run oi lcompany, EGPC.

The consideration shares will be issued to theseller on completion with an obligation on theseller to distribute such shares to its shareholderswithin 30 days of completion, save in relation toup to 5.8 million shares (representing less than1.5% of the company’s enlarged issued sharecapital) that the seller may retain for up to 18months following completion.

Production from the El Fayum concessionduring Q1 2019 averaged 5,692 boepd. Followingcompletion, SOCO will be focused on offsettingthe recent decline and then growing productionthrough additional drilling and the implementationof a secondary recovery program in the coreEl Fayum fields.

ExxonMobil in Nigerian Asset Sale?Reports out of Nigeria have US supermajor,ExxonMobil, in talks regarding the sell-off ofsome of its assets in the country. According to aReuters report, citing industry and bankingsources, the US firm has recently held talks onthe sale of a suite of oil and gas fields as itturns its focus to new developments in U.S. shaleand Guyana.

The potential disposals are expected to includestakes in onshore and offshore fields and couldraise up to $3 billion, two sources said.

Exxon officials reportedly have held talks withseveral Nigerian companies to gauge their interestin the fields. One source in the Reuters reportsaid that the company would soon open a dataroom – which would provide technical informationon the fields, such as seismic and productiondetails – in Nigeria.


AROUND THE WORLD

Aker Solutions Wins Jansz-Io Field JobAker Solutions was awarded a master contractto support the delivery of a subsea compressionsystem for the Chevron Australia-operated Jansz-Io Field offshore Australia. The first service orderunder the master contract will be for FEED of asubsea compression station that will boost therecovery of gas from the field.

The FEED scope will also cover an unmannedpower and control floater, as well as overall fieldsystem engineering services. The field controlstation will distribute onshore power to the subseacompression station.

The gas compression system will boost recoveryof gas more cost-effectively and with a smallerenvironmental footprint than a conventional semi-submersible compressor solution.

Compression will help maintain plateau gasproduction rates as reservoir pressure drops overtime. While such compressors have typically beeninstalled on platforms over sea level, placingthem on the seabed and near the wellheadsimproves recovery rates and reduces capital andoperating costs.

ExxonMobil andQP Hit Gas Offshore CyprusExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum made a naturalgas discovery off the coast of Cyprus. Thediscovery was made with the drilling of theGlaucus-1 exploration well on Block 10. The USfirm said the discovery could represent an in-place natural gas resource of 5-8 Tcf, but furtheranalysis will be needed to better determine theresource potential.

The well encountered a gas-bearing reservoir ofapproximately 436 ft. The well was safely drilledto 13,780 ft depth in 6,769 ft of water.

Glaucus-1 was the second of a two-well drillingprogram in Block 10; the first well, Delphyne-1,did not encounter commercial quantities ofhydrocarbons.

DEA Expands Positionin Mexico with AcquisitionDEA Deutsche Erdoel AG completed theacquisition of 100% of the shares of Sierra Oil& Gas on March 19, increasing its presence inMexico. The National Hydrocarbons Commission(CNH) and the Federal Economic CompetitionCommission (COFECE) of Mexico approvedthe transaction.

The acquisition has increased DEA’s presence inthe Mexican E&P market significantly;comprising of six exploration and appraisalblocks, including a material stake in the world-class Zama discovery.

With the closing of the acquisition, Sierra Oil &Gas has become a subsidiary of DEA DeutscheErdoel AG. DEA will now start to consolidate itstwo companies in Mexico, Deutsche ErdoelMéxico and Sierra Oil & Gas, to create a newbusiness unit.

Via Sierra, DEA holds now a 40% non-operatedworking interest in Block 7, containing asignificant part of Zama, one of the largest shallowwater discoveries of the past 20 years globally.As a whole, Zama is estimated to hold 400 millionto 800 million barrels of recoverable oilequivalent and is expected to start production by2022/23. DEA also adds non-operatedinterests in five highly prospective explorationblocks to its portfolio. Sierra’s explorationblocks cover approximately 9,400 sq km in thecore part of Mexico’s Sureste Basin. In addition,DEA currently operates the onshore Ogarrio oilfield, in partnership with Pemex, and holdsinterests in four exploration blocks in theTampico Misantla and Sureste Basins, three ofwhich as operator.

BP Renews Veolia ME’sWater Treatment Contract in OmanBP renewed Veolia Middle East’s five-yearcontract for a reverse osmosis raw water treatmentplant in Oman’s Khazzan tight gas field.

Veolia, a global leader in optimized resourcemanagement, will continue to handle operationsand maintenance (O&M) at the facility, whichhas a capacity of 6,000 m3/day, split between4,000 m3/day of processed water and 2,000m3/day of drinking water.

In line with the government’s economicdevelopment strategy, Veolia plans to promoteOmanization, raising the proportion of Omanicitizens in its workforce to 80% within thecontract’s first six months. It will also roll out a

tailor-made in-country value procurement programthat will prioritize Omani goods and suppliers.

Shell Signs forTwo Blocks Offshore ColumbiaColumbia’s National Hydrocarbons Agency(ANH) and Shell signed two important offshoreE&P contracts for the COL 3 and GUA-Off-3 blocks in the Colombian Caribbean Sea. Theinvestment commitment for these two blockscomes to nearly $100 million for the first phase.The president of ANH, Luis Miguel Morelli, andthe president of Shell in Colombia, Ana MaríaDuque, were the signers of the contracts.

In a statement Morelli said, “the signing of thesecontracts revalidates the confidence of oil investorsin the exploration of our offshore resources inthe Caribbean. Shell assumes investmentcommitments of more than 100 million dollarsfor the first phase of exploration in these twoblocks. However, if Shell later decides to continuewith the exploratory program of the followingtwo phases, the investment in its entirety mayexceed $650 million.”

The exploration project, which corresponds tothe blocks will be developed in an area that, asa whole, covers 880,000 hectares. In the contractfor the COL 3 block, the commitment is to developa minimum exploratory program (PEM), whichincludes the reprocessing of 3D seismic over anarea close to 1,000 sq km and the drilling of atleast one exploratory well in the first phase. Thecontract for the GUA-OFF-3 contemplates a three phase PEM that includes the acquisitionof 2,461 sq km of 3D seismic, the taking of43 samples of Piston Core and the reprocessingof 3D seismic over an area close to 2,000 sq km,in the first phase.

Just recently, Noble Energy agreed to buy a 40%operating stake in the two offshore explorationand production contracts from Shell for anunspecified sum.

Prosafe and Aker BP Cometo Terms on Safe ScandinaviaProsafe and Aker BP ASA have agreed torestructure the remaining seven one-month options

Sour

ce: A

ker

Solu

tions

Sour

ce: S

hell



for the Safe Scandinavia at the Ula platform inthe Norwegian sector of the North Sea, to threeone-week options.

In addition, the first of the one-week options hasbeen exercised. The total value of the option isapproximately $1 million with operationscontinuing into early-May 2019.

The Safe Scandinavia will be available for charterfrom late-May 2019 offering a unique combinationof high bed capacity, drilling support services,plug and abandon, well intervention anddecommissioning.

Morrison Doubles Pipelay Barge FleetChet Morrison Contractors acquired twopipelay/construction barges and a saturation divingsystem, effectively doubling the size of itspipelay barge fleet and increasing its saturationdiving capabilities.

The company acquired the LB Super Chief, a 265ft x 72 ft ABS-classed pipelay barge withaccommodations for 93 personnel. It is outfittedwith a 100 KIP pipe tensioner, is U.S. flaggedand provides extended capabilities for pipe sizeand water depth lay and recovery; and the DLBSubsea Vision, a 415 ft x 100 ft ABS-classedpipelay and construct ion barge withaccommodations for up to 140 personnel. It isoutfitted with a PDI Large Diameter PipelaySystem with a 100 KIP pipe tensioner, a Seatrax300-ton crane and a moonpool; a SaturationDiving System, and a 12-man ABS-classedportable IMCA compliant diving system capableof diving to depths up to 1,000 ft.

The acquisition complements Morrison’s existingfleet of pipelay barges consisting of the CM-15,CM-9 and Morrison’s two six-man saturationdiving systems, a portable system and one installedon the DSV Joanne Morrison, a 240 ft saturationdiving vessel and the largest of its class in theGulf of Mexico with a 70-ton subsea crane. TheDSV Joanne Morrison recently completed a majordry dock with upgrades to the vessel and divingsystems resulting in enhanced performance forsafety and operational assurance.

Crane Collapses Killing OneIn early March a crane collapsed at an offshoreplatform in the Adriatic, killing one platformworker and injuring two seafarers, according tothe operator of the field ENI. The accidentoccurred on the Barbara F platform, which islocated about 30 miles off the coast of Ancona,Italy. The crane was carrying out cargo operationsover an OSV. When it collapsed, it struck thevessel below, injuring two people. The wreckagethen slid below the surface, taking the craneoperator with it.

A dive team from the Ancona fire departmentfound the operator’s body in the submerged cranecab, which remained suspended by cables fromthe platform structure. The victim was identifiedas Egidio Benedetto. The injured men were bothevacuated to the Torrette di Ancona hospital, buttheir injuries were not life-threatening, accordingto local media.

An investigation into the circumstances of theaccident has been launched, with initial reportssuggesting that a structural failure may have beena contributing factor. In a statement, ENI saidthat it had “immediately started checks to shedlight on the dynamics of the event and is givingthe maximum cooperation to the coast guard, tothe port authorities and to the fire brigadessupporting them in the work for the safety ofthe area.”

Intertek Opens PetroleumTesting Lab in IraqIntertek saw the launch of the first independentcrude oil, fuel testing and petroleum productslaboratory in Iraq. The new hydrocarbonlaboratory, located in the port of Khor Al Zubair,will support the increased demand for qualityassurance solutions in the petroleum industryacross Iraq and will soon be offering octaneengine fuel testing of gasoline for the first timein the country.

The launch of the 1,300 sq ft laboratory allowsIntertek to offer its services in this fast-growingmarket and in this highly strategic location. KhorAl Zubair incorporates industrial areas that arehome to several petrochemical and othercompanies that will benefit from the proximityof the laboratory services to their operations. Thenine jetties in the port of Khor Al Zubair are vitalfor fuel imports and exports in Iraq and enabledirect access for crude carriers, refiners,distributors and trade companies.

Based within SKA Energy’s new oil storageterminal, the laboratory represents a significant

investment in the Iraq oil & gas industry. Offeringa wide range of services for the petroleum andrelated industries, the laboratory will deliversample testing, and services for the downstreamoil and gas and aviation sectors. It will alsoprovide detailed crude oil, naphtha and gasolinequality analysis and testing, which helps clientsmaintain or improve fuel quality to meetcommercial and regulatory specifications. Thefacility will offer 24/7 operations and trouble-shooting support.

GeoPark Enters EcuadorGeoPark entered Ecuador with its acquisition ofthe Espejo and Perico blocks. The Espejo andPerico blocks are attractive, low-riskexploration blocks located in SucumbíosProvince in the north-eastern part of Ecuador, inthe Oriente Basin.

The Espejo block covers an area of 15,650 acresand the Perico block covers an area of 17,700acres. Both blocks are covered with 3D seismicand are adjacent to multiple discoveries, producingfields and existing infrastructure.

From existing 3D seismic and other relevantdata, more than five multilayer, ready-to-drilllight oil prospects and leads have been identified.Ongoing geoscience evaluation and fieldoperations are expected to start in late 2019 orearly 2020.

The blocks were awarded to the GeoPark andFrontera consortium on a 50/50 basis, in the formof production sharing contracts in the IntracamposBid Round carried out on March 12.

The winning bid consisted of committing aminimum investment program of carrying out55 sq km of 3D seismic in the Espejo blockand drilling four exploration wells in eachblock, with a total estimated investmentcommitment of $60 million ($30 million net toGeoPark) over the next four years. GeoParkand Frontera will have a 70-78% contractor shareat approximately $60-70 Brent. The final awardis contingent upon regulatory approvals andthe execution of the contracts, expected forQ2 2019.

Johan Sverdrup Living QuartersTopside Ready for Sail-AwayThe Johan Sverdrup living quarters topside, thefourth and last platform for the first phase of thegiant project is now ready for sail-away. Thetopsides will sail from Kværner’s yard on Stordto the Johan Sverdrup field, where it will beinstalled in a single lift.

AROUND THE WORLDSo

urce

: Che

t Mor

riso

n


A JV between Kværner and KBR was awardedthe NOK 6.7 billion contract in June 2015 forconstructing the Johan Sverdrup utility andliving quarters topside. Leirvik AS was assignedto construct the living quarters modules forthe platform.

On February 15 the JV formally handed over thetopside to Equinor. One month later, after furtherpreparations, the living quarters topside is nowready for sail-away to the Johan Sverdrup fieldin the North Sea where it will be transported onboard the lifting vessel Pioneering Spirit.

TechnipFMC Taggedfor ENI’s Merakes ProjectThe award of a contract for the integratedengineering, procurement, construction,

transportation and installation for ENI’s Merakesproject offshore Indonesia has gone toTechnipFMC. This contract covers five deepwaterwells, and their 50-kilometer tie back to theexisting Jangkrik Floating Production Unit inIndonesia.

The project scope includes engineering,procurement, installation and pre-commissioningof subsea equipment such as subsea trees, amanifold, large bore deepwater high pressureflexible lines, umbilicals and distributionhardware, flexible risers, flowlines and jumpers.

Eagle Explorer Contract ExtendedSeaBird Exploration’s contract for the EagleExplorer with CGG has been extended forapproximately 80 days. The contract is now firm

until August 15, with further options for CGG toextend up to 60 days.

The Eagle Explorer has been on a 160-daycontract with CGG since acquired in Novemberand completing its 10-year class docking inDecember 2018 and is currently working as asource vessel in the Gulf of Mexico. The extensionis for another survey as source vessel inNorthern Europe.

Sour

ce: S

eabi

rd E

xplo

ratio

n


POWER & ALTERNATIVES

First Floating PV Projectin South Africa CompleteSouth Africa saw its first floating PV projectcompleted. The floating PV farm was undertakenby New Southern Energy, with the installationoperating at a dam next to a fruit farm justoutside of Franschhoek in the country’s WesternCape province.

The floating PV project has a generation capacityof 60kW and will help produce clean energy tothe farm, while also minimizing evaporationfrom the farm’s dam and saving valuableagricultural land.

The first phase of the installation, which alsoincluded the land-based solar installation on theMarlenique farm, will allow the facility to run90% of its energy intensive cold storage, irrigationand wedding venue facilities off of the traditionalelectrical grid. A second phase, which featuresenergy storage assets, will remove the farm fromthe electrical grid entirely.

Sonangol to Invest in SolarAngola’s state-run firm Sonangol has invested inthe construction of a solar power plant. The firmwill invest an estimated $33 million to establishthe plant in the Namibe province.

The plant will be built in 2020, said CarlosSaturnino, chairman of Sonangol’s board ofdirectors. It will have a first phase with a capacityof 25 MW, but this power will be increased to100 MW in the future.

Zambia’s Largest Solar Plant CompletePresident Edgar Lungu has commissioned a54-MW solar power plant, as the construction ofthe Bangweulu plant reached completion. Theplant is Zambia’s largest renewable energy project,constructed at a cost of $60 million.

The solar power plant under the BangweuluPower Company Limited is a JV of theIndustrial Development Corporation and Neoen,a French company.

The World Bank Group’s Scaling Solar Projectawarded a contract to Neoen to construct a 100MW solar power plant from the planned 500 MWunder the project.

Neoen holds a majority stake in the Bangweulusolar park and will be selling electricity to ZESCOfor the next 25 years at a rate of $60.15 per MWh.

The project represents a total investment of $60million, $39 million of which was contributedby the IFC and OPIC.

During the launch, President Lungu praised theIDC for taking up the challenge to create anenergy mix to bring solar power into the nationalelectricity grid in response to the electricity deficitthat affected the country in 2015.

Tanzanian Solar-HybridProject Breaks GroundRP Global, an independent renewable energydeveloper and majority shareholder ofJUMEME Rural Power Supply Ltd., announcedthat construction of the first phase of its ambitioussolar-hybrid mini-grid project in Tanzania wasin progress. In this first scaling phase, 11 newmini-grids are currently being constructed to bring24/7 electricity supply to a population of morethan 80,000 people.

Built on a cluster of islands in Lake Victoria,these independent solar-hybrid mini-grids,equipped with battery storage technology, willelectrify 20 villages. This project was enabled bythe European Union, who provided co-financingthrough the ACP- EU Energy Facility.Commissioning is scheduled to take place in Juneof this year.

In the upcoming second scaling phase of theproject, JUMEME aims to build up to 11 moremini-grids to electrify 23 additional villages,bringing energy services to a population of over160,000 people. This project extension is wellunderway, with consents and permits alreadysecured and preparations for the implementationtaking place.

Apart from the obvious improvement of livingconditions, bringing power to these off-gridcommunities will set a full virtuous circle inmotion; JUMEME’s first mini-grid system, whichis in operation since early 2016 confirms the greatpotential for increased rural economic growthwhen clean energy starts powering people’s livesand business ventures. This is especially true forwomen, who are provided with new means togain economic independence by foundingelectricity-reliant businesses, such as hair salonsor bakeries. In addition, access to electricity willenable the installation of irrigation systems andwater pumps, thereby reducing the adverse impactof draughts. It will also improve the productionof food and its storage.

The JUMEME venture was made possible throughfinancial support from the European Union underthe ACP-EU Energy Facility, and REA, Tanzania’sRural Energy Agency.

Algeria Plans Two Power PlantsIn Algeria, two power plants with an individualcapacity of 160 MW will be built in Adrar andIn Salah. These two projects will ensure acontinuous supply of electricity in summeraccording to Mohamed Arkab, the president andCEO of Sonelgaz.

The development of the plants includes theinstallation of energy transfer stations with acapacity of 220 kV. Three of these infrastructureswill be constructed, two in Adrar and one in InSalah. They will allow the electrical networkwhich stops at In Salah, to extend towardsTimimoune while passing by Adrar. These projectsshould come to fruition by 2022.

It is also expected that 600 km of high voltagetransmission lines will be built over the nextfour years.

Morocco and Spain Plan 3rd ConnectionMorocco has signed with Spain a MoU for theconstruction of a third electricity interconnectionbetween the two countries. The national electricfirms of the two countries will soon carry out theappraisal work for the project, which should comeinto operation before 2026 and allow the transportof 700 MW of electricity.

The cost of this new power line has been estimatedat €150 million, which will be divided betweenthe two countries.

“The construction of a third electricityinterconnection line between Morocco and Spainwill allow the integration of renewable energies,mainly photovoltaics into the European electricitysystem,” said the Spanish electricity company.

The first interconnection between the twocountries was commissioned in 1998. Thesubmarine line is 28 km long and has a technicalcapacity of 700 MW. Another 31.3 km long linewas also inaugurated in 2016.

Sour

ce: N

ew S

outh

ern

Ene

rgy


Solar to Power GambianSchools and Health CentersGambia will be the first country in the world toensure all of its 1,100 rural schools and healthcenters will benefit from a reliable energy supplyusing solar and battery technology. This willhappen through a 20-MW solar energy and400 km distribution project to transform energyaccess and cut costs, brought to Gambia by theEuropean Investment Bank (EIB). This is theEIB’s first engagement in Gambia since 1991.

Access to clean energy in the Gambia is set to betransformed under a new €142 million initiativeto harness solar power and supply clean energyacross the country, backed by the EIB, WorldBank and European Union.

Once operational, the scheme will increase energysupply in the Gambia by one fifth and transformelectricity access in rural communities throughthe construction of a new photovoltaic plant atJambur near Banjul, new power transmission anddistribution infrastructure. The project willincrease access to energy, ensure that educationand health services benefit from reliable powerand help to address current power shortages inthe country.

Energy demand in Gambia has grown by 5.5%a year in recent years and the new 20-MW solarpower plant to the national energy grid will bothsignificantly increase Gambia’s current generationcapacity of 98 MW and enable electrification ofrural areas.

Power from KaribaHydropower Dam HalvedDue to a drop in the output of water levels in thereservoirs supplying the Kariba hydropower dam,power production has dropped by half. Thepower station at the border between Zambiaand Zimbabwe is supplying both countrieswith electricity.

According to Reuters, the two countries agreedto the reduction in electricity production oneach side of the border, from about 1,000 MW,to 500 MW.

“The Zambezi River Authority has given us anannual allocation of 19 billion cubic meters ofwater, which means that we will only be ableto generate 500 MW maximum,” said arepresentative of the Zambian power company.

According to a technical bulletin issuedjointly by Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique,the water level in the Kariba Dam hasdropped to 43%.

Sour

ce: E

IB

Sour

ce: W

orld

Ban

k


FACTS AND FIGURESSo

urce

: BH

GE

*Data not available

Vari

ous

sour

ces

incl

udin

g E

IA, I

EA

and

OPE

C

Country

African Rig Count

AlgeriaAngolaBeninCameroonChadCongoCongo (DRC)Cote D’IvoireDjiboutiEgyptEquatorial GuineaEthiopiaGabonGhanaGuineaKenyaLiberiaLibyaMauritaniaMoroccoMozambiqueNamibiaNigerNigeriaSenegalSierra LeoneSouth AfricaSudan*TanzaniaTogoTunisiaUganda

4450273112

260273080901001

1400100020

February

2019

5250273112

270273080

1501001

1400100020

March

* Based on secondary sources

4450173012

260270080901001

1500100020

January

Sour

ce: O

PEC

Country

OPEC Oil Production

AlgeriaAngolaCongoEcuadorEquatorial GuineaGabonIran, I.R.IraqKuwaitLibyaNigeriaSaudi ArabiaUAEVenezuelaTOTAL OPECOPEC exluding Iraq

2018

10261448321524121204

272646472709902

17231011830681021

3055825911

February

(Thousand Barrels/Day*)

Country

Africa Productionof Crude Oil

AlgeriaAngolaCameroonChadCongo (Brazzaville)Congo (Kinshasa)Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

EgyptEquatorial GuineaGabonGhanaLibyaMauritaniaMoroccoNiger NigeriaSouth AfricaSudan and South SudanTunisiaTotal Africa

2018

10261448

791033212028

639121185125902

00.520

17233

17748

6968.5

February

(including Lease Condensate, Thousand Barrels/Day)

Sour

ce: I

EA

Oil

Mar

ket R

epor

t

Country

AmericasCanadaChileMexicoUnited StatesAsia OceaniaAustraliaOthersEuropeNorwayUKOthersTotal OECDTotal Non OECD

2018

23.475.140.011.93

16.380.480.410.063.531.821.2

0.5127.4831.43

February

World Oil Production(million barrels per day)

10191444

781013252028

637112180120883

00.520

17333

17548

6926.5

January

10511490

8299

3292028

640108197120928

00.520

17503

23048

7143.5

December

2019

10191444315520112195

273147122723883

17331017930751151

3079226080

January

10511490329524108197

276947142800928

17501055332181148

3157826864

December

2019

23.425.220.011.86

16.330.470.410.063.521.821.20.5

27.4231.42

January

23.335.220.011.97

16.130.450.380.073.411.851.040.52

27.1929.46

December

2019



International Rig CountsAREA Last Count

USCANADAINTERNATIONAL

Count Change FromPrior Count

Date ofPrior Count

Change fromLast Year

Date of LastYear’s Count

Apr 12, 2019Apr 12, 2019

Mar, 2019

102266

1025

-3-212

Apr 5, 2019Apr 5, 2019Feb, 2019

14-3667

Apr 13, 2018Apr 13, 2019

Mar, 2018

757473727170696867666564636261605958575655

April 01Henry HubNew York







2.732.74

2.742.71

2.622.70

2.712.73

2.722.70

2.752.63

2.552.55

Dollars per BTU

Dat

a co

mpi

led

by P

etro

leum

Afr

ica

from

var

ious

sour

ces i

nclu

ding

OPE

C, E

IA a

nd o

ther

s

April 01OPEC BasketBrent CrudeNymex







$68.3169.0861.71

69.1269.2162.52

69.0267.9363.15

70.3571.0263.96

70.4171.3063.67

70.2170.9063.56

70.8171.1463.87

OPEC Basket Brent Crude Nymex

Oil Prices

Gas PricesSpot Price Futures Price*

2.50

4.00

2.00

3.00

3.50

Ap

ril 0

5

Ap

ril 0

9

Ap

ril 1

5

Ap

ril 1

7

Ap

ril 1

1

Ap

ril 0

1

Ap

ril 0

3

$

Ap

ril 0

5

Ap

ril 0

9

Ap

ril 1

5

Ap

ril 1

7

Ap

ril 1

1

Ap

ril 0

1

Ap

ril 0

3

Ap

ril 0

5

Ap

ril 0

9

Ap

ril 1

5

Ap

ril 1

7

Ap

ril 1

1

Ap

ril 0

1

Ap

ril 0

3

Ap

ril 0

5

Ap

ril 0

9

Ap

ril 1

5

Ap

ril 1

7

Ap

ril 1

1

Ap

ril 0

1

Ap

ril 0

3

Ap

ril 0

5

Ap

ril 0

9

Ap

ril 1

5

Ap

ril 1

7

Ap

ril 1

1

Ap

ril 0

1

Ap

ril 0

3


CONFERENCES

AD INDEX

ADIPECAfrica Oil & PowerAlternative Energy AfricaDreg Waters Petroleum & LogisticsEuro Petroleum Consultants

IBC45, BC

473323

Frontier CommunicationsOffshore Network Ltd.Oil & Gas EurasiaPetroleum AfricaVale Media Group

72917

13, 21, 26IFC

MARCH 201910-13 Algeria, Algeria www.napec-dz.comNorth Africa Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (NAPEC)

25-26 Bahrain www.gulfsafetyforum.com vGulf Safety Forum 2019

APRIL 20191-5 Shanghai, China www.lng2019.comLNG 2019

27-28 Bahrain www.opex.bizOPEX MENA 2019 – Operational Excellence In Oil,Gas & Petrochemicals Conference

26-27 Johannesburg, South Africa www.terrapinn.comPower & Electricity World 2019

1-5 Malabo, Equatorial Guinea www.africaoilandpower.comAPPO Cape VII (7th African Petroleum Producers OrganizationConference & Exhibition)

MAY 20192-3 Houston, TX www.energycorporateafrica.com12th Annual Sub-Saharan Africa Oil & Gas Conference 2019

27-29 Sardinia, Italy www.europetro.comIDW 2019 – International Downstream Week

JUNE 20194-5 Accra, Ghana www.bit.lyOffshore Well Intervention – West Africa

4-6 Luanda, Angola www.africaoilandpower.comAngola Oil & Gas 2019

11-11 London, UK www.africaoilandpower.comLondon Investor Forum 2019

OCTOBER 2019

9-11 Cape Town, South Africa www.africaoilandpower.comAOP 2019 (Africa Oil & Power)

NOVEMBER 2019

26-27 Malabo, Equatorial Guinea www.yearofenergy2019.comGECF 5th Gas Summit

DECEMBER 201910-11 Bahrain www.bbtc-mena.bizBBTC MENA 2019 – Bottom of the Barrel Technology Conference

27-28 Sardinia, Italy www.europetro.comIDTC 2019 – International DownstreamTechnology & Strategy Conference

28-29 Sardinia, Italy www.europetro.comBBTC 2019 – International Bottomof the Barrel Technology Conference

11-13 Dakar, Senegal www.ametrade.org17th African Energy and Petroleum Summit (SIEPA)

1-3 Brazzaville, Congo www.ametrade.orgCongo International Oil & Conference and Exhibition (CIEHC 2019)

7-9 Amsterdam, The Netherlands www.offshore-energy.bizOffshore Energy Exhibition & Conference

10-11 Accra, Ghana www.ametrade.org3rd Africa Oil & Gas Local Content & Sustainability Summit

15-17 Alexandria, Egypt www.moc-egypt.comMOC 2019 (Mediterranean Offshore Conference & Exhibition)

11-14 Abu Dhabi, UAR www.adipec.comADIPEC 2019

Documents

Monthly Focus - Petroleum Africa · support the African Union and its programs (RCM-Africa) is all about up scaling efforts to get needed sustainable development results for the continent,