Petroleum Africa September/October 2019 · 2019. 10. 4. · FAR Ltd appointed Timothy Woodall as an...

Petroleum Africa September/October 2019 3

Local ImpactEngen takes a Stand AgainstArtisan Shortages and Unemployment 30

DEPARTMENTSMoving OnMessage from the EditorAfrican PoliticsAfrica’s Big FiveAfrica at LargeDownstream News

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ON THE COVER

ContentsVol. 16 Issue 5September/October 2019

Power & AlternativesMarket MoversAround the WorldFacts and FiguresConferencesAdvertisers’ Index

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Technology and SolutionsGetting Closer to Deepwater Reservoirswith Pioneering OBN Imaging 24

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Uganda’s Kingfisherby night.

Downstream FocusGreater Tortue / Ahmeyin LNG Project 28

African FocusOverview: South Africa

Mozambique

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New Products & ServicesSercel Launches GPR – A New Ocean Bottom Node

Schlumberger Introduces Cutting-Edge Intelligent Wireline

Clariant Opens HTE Lab in Houston

Halliburton Introduces CommanderTM Full Bore Cement Head

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Monthly FocusUganda Open for Business 26

Policy & LegislationNew Senegal Oil & Gas Legislation 32

Deepsea Stavanger 2 offshore Mozambique

Greater Tortue Ahmeyim LNG Development

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MOVING ON

Chris Tong has retired as a director of KosmosEnergy as of September 18. Steven Sterin, acurrent director of Kosmos and member of thecompany’s Audit Committee has replaced Tongas Chairman of the Audit Committee, effectiveimmediately.

Following the acquisition of Petronor by AfricanPetroleum, changes have been made to the board.The new board of directors consists of EyasAlhomouz (Chairman), Dr. David King, JensPace, Stephen West, Bjarne Moe, TimothyTurner, Joseph Iskander and Knut Søvold.Changes were also made changes to itsexecutive management. The new managementwill see Jens Pace as CEO, Stephen West is CFO,Michael Barrett exploration director, KnutSøvold is COO, Gerhard Ludvigsen is businessdevelopment manager and Claus Frimann-Dahlis chief technical officer.

Centurion Law Group appointed US-trainedNigerian attorney Onyeka C. Ojogbo to lead itsteam and operations in its newly openedoffice in Germany. In her new role, Ojogbo willbe handling a growing portfolio of clientscoming from Germany and Western Europe,and wil l work on fur ther at t ract inginvestments from European energy companiesinto Africa.

Benedict Peters, chairman and CEO of Nigerianfirm Aiteo, will serve on the board of advisorsof the US Chamber of Commerce’s US-AfricaBusiness Center.

Energy rental and service company, Tiger Rentalsannounced the appointment of Paulo Silva Curtoas business development manager for the MiddleEast. Curto has over 15 years’ experience workingin international business, most recently he wasTiger’s general manager for sub-Saharan Africa.

Neconde Energy has a new head of gas ventures,Chichi Emenike. Emenike has a host of industryexperience working with such firms asExxonMobil and Sun Trust Oil Company. Priorto joining Neconde, Emenike was head of businessand commercial operations at Falcon Corp.

T h e S u p e r v i s o r y B o a r d o f O M VAktiengesellschaft reappointed Rainer Seele asits chairman of the executive board and CEO ofOMV. Seele’s reappointment extends his term toJune 2022 with an option to extend for oneadditional year. Johann Pleininger, chiefupstream operations officer, was also reappointedas executive board member and deputy chairmanof the board.

The Chinese government has shuffled thechairman and chief executive of state-owned oilgiant China National Offshore Oil Corporation(CNOOC), Yang Hua, to a new position. Yang’snew post will see him become general managerof China’s chemical manufacturer and traderSinochem.

Eugene Woychyshyn was appointed as VP ofFinance and CFO of NXT Energy Solutions Inc.Woychyshyn’s appointment was effectiveimmediately. He has been the company’s interimCFO since December 2018 and its controllersince November 2017.

Xodus Group has two new principal consultantsto its subsea integrity management team. DjamalHamel has been appointed to the role of principal

consultant, having previously worked within asenior pipeline position for six years at SpiritEnergy, as well as engineering roles at Wood,Subsea 7 and Technip. The second appointmentsaw Chris Overton joining the company as aprincipal consultant, following seven years assenior pipeline integrity engineer at RepsolSinopec.

Maria Moraeus Hanssen, COO and DeputyCEO of Wintershall Dea, will leave the companyas of December 31 to pursue other opportunities.Until that time, she will continue in her presentrole providing board-level leadership of theEMEA business units and the merger integration.A recruitment process for her successor isunderway.

FAR Ltd appointed Timothy Woodall as anexecutive director of the company. Theappointment was effective September 1.Woodall brings over 30 years’ experience in thefinancial sector with a focus on the oil andgas industry.

Petrolia NOCO AS appointed Linn KatrineHøie as managing director for the company. Høiewill be responsible for taking the company forwardin the next stage of its growth. She comes toPetrolia NOCO with broad experience from theenergy sector, most recently workingwith digitalization of field development forAker BP.

Dr. Stuart Lake has joined Invictus Energy asthe non-executive chairman, this was effectiveAugust 1. Dr Lake has over 34 years industryexperience, most recently as CEO of AGMPetroleum. He was also CEO at AfricanPetroleum Corp.

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.

A m e r i c a n b u s i n e s smagnate, oil tycoon andfinancier T. Boone Pickenspassed away on Sept 11. Atrained geologist, Pickensstarted his oil career withPhillips Petroleum beforestarting his own company,Mesa Petroleum, in 1956,

which grew into one of the largest independentoil companies in the world. He became wellknown for many of the numerous oil companytakeovers during his illustrious career. Pickenswas 91 at the time of his passing.

T. Boone Pickens

W F S Te c h n o l o g i e sappointed a new chieftechnology officer – JimDarroch. He has a host ofexperience, most recentlywith Honeywell. Prior toHoneywell, Darroch spentseveral years at Artesyn(formerly Emerson) as

senior director and VP of Engineering.

Jim Darroch

Tanzania’s president, JohnMagufuli, has reinstatedJames Mataragio asmanaging director of thecountry’s state-run oiland gas firm, TPDC.Mataragio had beens u s p e n d e d s i n c eAugust 2016.James Mataragio

AMETEK SMP Wallingford appointedHunter Stept as process engineer at itsSpecialty Metal Products division inWallingford. AMETEK SMP also appointedDr. Brad Richards as product manager,Powders.

Hunter Stept Brad Richards

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

As we are all aware, China has expanded into emerging markets the world over and Africannations are no exception. Countries in Africa are receiving significant Chinese investmentsinto their economies across numerous sectors. In the year 2000, China’s investment in thecontinent was at about $10 billion; fast forward to 2019 and that figure sits at a staggeringfigure of over $200 billion and makes China Africa’s largest trading partner.

Africa now boasts six of the world’s fastest growing economies, and China, in part, hasbeen a catalyst to this development. Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Rwanda, Senegal andSouth Sudan make up Africa’s presence in the global Top 10. It will come as no surprise,then, that China is the top import partner for four of the six countries and comes in secondwith Senegal and third with South Sudan. According to a Financial Times (FT) report, Chinasurged to become Ghana’s top trading partner, with “bilateral trade rising from less than$100 million in 2000 to $6.7 billion in 2017.”

China’s investments are attractive to African governments as they come mostly with nostrings attached unlike deals made with Western investors who attach a long check list ofrequirements. Often when making deals with China, African governments turn a blind eyeto their own local content requirements, and Chinese workers perform a good deal of thework. Also attractive to African governments is that deals with the Chinese affords themthe opportunity to avoid bureaucracy related to transparency issues, especially in theextractives industry. In short, there are far fewer strings attached to Chinese investment.

This Africa-China love affair may be hitting some snags, however. As these economiesmature, and as new Chinese-led projects come to fruition, Africans are increasingly takingnote of some of the pitfalls in the partnerships as compared to those with western nations.On the other side of the coin, China might become a bit more cautious with its investmentsas not all projects are panning out as planned; Ethiopia and Ghana serve as examples.

One such example can be seen in Ghana where there has been a backlash against the Chinese,especially in the gold mining industry, with locals unhappy that the contractors are gettingan unfair share of their national wealth. A campaign of harassment and attacks on Chineseworkers broke out resulting in many Chinese deaths. Further, much resistance has beenforthcoming regarding a recent lucrative deal which would have Chinese companies miningfor Bauxite in an environmentally sensitive area. President Nana Akufo-Addo, in an effortto ease tensions, said that “that all mining done in the area would be carried out using themost current industry best practices,” adding “what is important for us is to keep our eyeson both goals,” referring to economic gain as well as safe extraction.

Chinese investments have hit some stumbling blocks in Ethiopia as well. Ethiopian PrimeMinister Abiy Ahmed in September 2018 said that China had agreed to restructure therepayment period for some of its loans from 10 to 30 years; a deal that China had littlechoice in accepting. In February 2019 Abiy told parliament that his government hassuccessfully renegotiated the repayment period for 60% of its external debt, which stoodat over $26 billion. China was stuck between a rock and a hard place of sorts. Accordingto a FT report, China’s main project insurer, China Export and Credit Insurance Corp, saidit had lost more than $1 billion on the Ethiopian-Djibouti railway alone, just one instanceof a project straying from the planned outcome.

While Chinese investment into African nations is not going away, it does appear that bothsides are going to enter into agreements with more caution; the Chinese to protect theirinvestments, and the Africans to protect their environments and jobs for their citizens. Thisnew transition provides an opening for the west to maybe revisit some opportunities theywere previously not on the short-list for.

In this issue, be sure to look at the in-depth coverage of the Senegal-Mauritania GreaterTortue/Ahmeyin LNG Project in our Downstream Focus. In our new section, Policy &Legislation, read more on Senegal’s recent petroleum legislation. South Africa andMozambique fill the pages of this issue’s Africa Focus where the latest updates are reviewed.And in our Technology feature, CGG discusses the benefits of the latest OBN imagingtechnology opening doors to a new era of subsalt imaging. As always, your comments andsuggestions are welcome 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 Nicklejnick[email protected]

Senior CorrespondentMark Pabst

ContributorsCGGHugo Moreira

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



AFRICAN POLITICS

Protests Continue in AlgeriaAlthough long-term president AbdelazizBouteflika stepped down in April after continuedcalls for him to leave office by the general public,the demonstrations have not stopped. Algeriansare continuing their protests, calling for more ofthe political elites to leave office. They are alsodemanding presidential elections be scheduled.

While General AhmedGaïd Salah, Army Chiefof Staff, has stated that thepresidential election willbe held in mid-December,Hirak ( the people’srevolution) and oppositionparties are becomingincreasingly insistent thatthe election be scheduledsooner rather than later.

Meanwhile, Acting Head of State AbdelkaderBensalah and Karim Younès are trying to find ahappy compromise, not an easy task consideringSalah is steadfast in his resistance to moving theelection up, and has made his displeasure towardthe protesters known.

More Migrants Die in LibyaOver the last few months, a number of migrantdeaths have occurred in Libya, according to theInternational Organization for Migration (IOM).In July, 53 migrants, among them six minors,were killed in an airstrike on the Tajoura detentioncenter. That facility remains operational to thisday, despite persistent calls to end the arbitrarydetention of migrants, according to IOM.

In September, a Sudanese migrant died from abullet wound, hours after being returned to shoreby the Libyan Coast Guard. The tragedy occurredat Abusitta Disembarkation point in Tripoli asmany of the 103 migrants returned to shore wereresisting being sent back to detention centers.IOM staff, who were on the scene to provide aidto migrants, reported that armed men beganshooting in the air when several migrants triedto run away from their guards.

Some 5,000 migrant women, children, and menremain detained in inhumane conditions in Libya.Over 3,000 are detained in areas of active conflictwhere they are at heightened risk.

Xenophobic RiotsBreak-out in South AfricaAt least five people were killed in the latestoutbreak of xenophobic riots in South Africa inearly September. Rioters are targeting foreignersand their businesses, with fires and looting afrequent occurrence. The police arrested more

than 80 people and confirmed five deaths asriots in Johannesburg and the capital Pretoriatook place.

This wave of unrest in the country is raising fearsof a recurrence of violence aimed at foreignersin 2015 in which at least seven people werekilled. Before that, some 60 people were killedin a wave of unrest around the country in 2008.Regional leaders have expressed concerns for thesafety of their nationals whom haveimmigrated to South Africa and are the target ofthe violence.

In the wake of the xenophobic climate in SouthAfrica and resultant riots, a team of PresidentialSpecial Envoys from South Africa made a visitto Nigeria, Niger, Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania, theDemocratic Republic of Congo and Zambia todeliver a message of solidarity from PresidentCyril Ramaphosa. The Special Envoy consists ofSouth Africa’s former Minister of Energy, JeffRadebe, Ambassador Kingsley Mmabolo andDr. Khulu Mbatha, a veteran of the AfricanNational Congress.

The group of Presidential Special Envoysdelivered a message of solidarity from SouthAfrica’s President Cyril Ramaphosa to the headsof state as a means to assure them that thegovernment is committed to addressingxenophobic attacks which sparked in the Gautengprovince.

“The Special Envoys are tasked with reassuringfellow African countries that South Africa iscommitted to the ideals of pan-African unity andsolidarity. The Special Envoys will also reaffirmSouth Africa’s commitment to the rule of law,”said an official statement by The Presidency ofthe Republic of South Africa.

Special Envoy Radebe met with Nigeria’sPresident Muhammadu Buhari, President NanaAkufo-Addo of Ghana, and Senegal’s President,Macky Sall.

Tunisians Taketo Polls, Run-Off ScheduledOn September 15 Tunisians participated in thefirst round of presidential elections, the second“free” polls which have been held since theso-termed ArabSpring that startedin the North Africannation. The fieldwas large with26 cand ida tes ,i n c l u d i n g t w owomen, running inthe election.

The seven populist candidates took approximately55% of the vote, whereas none of the modernistcandidates won much more than 10% of the vote.Law professor Kais Saied won the first roundwith 18.4%. Jailed media magnate Nabil Karoui,who remains detained, came in second place witha strong 15.6%.

The candidate from the Islamist party Ennahda,Abdelfattah Mourou, was unable to garner enoughvotes to move to the second round of voting.Ennahda said it will support the outsider KaisSaied in the presidential runoff againstNabil Karoui.

Mugabe Dies in Singapore Hospital at 95Former Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabedied on September 6 at the age of 95, at GleneaglesHospital in Singapore. Mugabe had been receivingtreatment at the Singapore hospital since April.

Mugabe held the presidency for almost fourdecades at 37 years, and was one of Africa’s mostcontroversial leaders. He was deposed in 2017having been given an ultimatum by the rulingZANU-PF to either resign or face impeachment.This pressure largely came due to his firing ofFirst Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa andfears that his much younger wife, Grace Miugabe,was being groomed to take over as president.

Coming to power as a hero for his fight againstthe former white masters of colonialism andAfrican nationalism stance, he later digressedinto an authoritarian. He was known for hisbrutalism against political rivals with many deathsattributed to his orders. At points during his rule,the economy was driven into the ground and thecitizenry faced starvation.

Demonstrations Rock Egypt Once AgainFrom September 20-21, Egyptians took to thestreets in Cairo and other major cities calling forthe resignation of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi.The protests were in response to an online callfor demonstrations against government corruptionby businessman and actor Mohamed Ali. Fromhis self-imposed exile location in Spain, Aliinstigated the protests after he began postingvideos accusing Egyptian officials of squanderingbillions of Egyptian pounds. His first video onSeptember 2 garnered 1.7 million views on hisFacebook page alone.

Security forces and riot police used tear gas onthe crowds on day 1, and reports have it that onday 2 of the protests, rubber bullets and liveammunition in addition to the tear gas were usedto disperse the crowds. Hundreds of protestorswere reportedly arrested in 12 locations throughoutthe country.

GeneralAhmed Gaïd Salah

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The government also issued warningsto media to be careful in their coverage ofthe crisis.

They also blocked access to various internationalnews organizations who covered the developmentsand access to some social media outlets has beenblocked or limited.

Africom Commander VisitsSahel, Reinforces RegionalCommitment and SupportGeneral Stephen Townsend, commander, U.S.Africa Command (Africom), made a visit toseveral Sahel nations including Burkina Faso andMali. During his visits he met with PresidentRoch Marc Christian Kaboré and several otherBurkinabe and allied military leaders as part ofa larger West Africa regional visit.

Meetings focused on building a comprehensiveunderstanding of U.S. and partner nation activitiesin the Sahel, particularly in Burkina Faso. Withinthe last 12 months, there has been an increase inviolent extremist attacks in the northern part ofthe country near the tri-border with Mali andNiger. It was important for the commander to

gain an increased understanding and assessmentof the situation.

In Mali, he met with President Ibrahim BoubacarKeïta and senior Malian military leaders to discussdefense and security-related issues related tothe complex and evolving threat environment inthe Sahel.

Townsend also met with leaders of the G5 SahelJoint Task Force. This African-led organizationis comprised of five neighboring countries thatrespond to transnational security, humanitarian,and development challenges in the Sahel.

In its first year, the nascent G5 Sahel Joint Forcecontinues to grow and make operational strides.“The G5 Sahel force has a tough mission,” saidTownsend. “Our continued assistance andpartnership will help them, the Malian securityforces and our other partners as they work toachieve it. It is important to contain the spreadof terrorism in this region.”

U.S. military funding to the G5 Sahel JointForce provides equipment, training, andadvisory support to allow G5 members to

operate, protect, and maintain mobile infantryforces in their fight against violent extremistgroups in the region. In addition to the JointForce support, AFRICOM provides bilateralassistance to strengthen the military, justice,and law enforcement capabilities of itsG5 partners.

During August, Townsend made a visit toEast Africa, meeting with troops, and otherrepresentatives of the country’s departmentof Defense as well as embassy andother officials. This was his first visitto Africa since taking command of Africomin July.

General Stephen Townsend visits Africa

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Welaptega CompletesBP Mooring Inspection in AngolaWelaptega used its pioneering optical chainmeasurement system (CMS), complete with newautomated edge tracking software, to execute amooring inspection campaign for BP offshoreAngola. According to Welaptega, the inspectioncampaign was conducted under very challengingsubsea conditions.

The project saw Welaptega use its new edgetracking data system and its patented CMStechnology to inspect the mooring system of BP’sPSVM FPSO, which is situated in Block 31offshore Angola. The PSVM project is the deepestdeep-water project in Africa.

Using its innovative CMS for data collection,Welaptega was able to provide accuratemeasurements in difficult operating conditions,which are known to create significant challengesfor reliable and accurate data collection onmooring systems offshore Angola.

The CMS is made up of four video cameras (depthrated for 3,000 meters), integrated LED lightingcontrol, and a topside digital recording systemthat collects high quality video of the measurementlocations. The new edge tracking software thenallows the data to be processed and measurementresults delivered offshore.

Gbetiokun DrillingOperations CompleteEland Oil & Gas, through its JV subsidiary, ElcrestExploration and Production Nigeria, completedthe drilling phase of the Gbetiokun-4 developmentwell. The OES Teamwork rig successfullycompleted drilling operations on the Gbetiokun-4 well; the first well to be drilled on the Gbetiokunfield following approval of the Field DevelopmentPlan (FDP) on July 3 by Nigeria’s Departmentof Petroleum Resources.

Analysis of log data indicates that the well hasexceeded pre-drill expectations, encounteringhigh-quality oil-bearing reservoirs close toprognosed depths. In all, approximately 345net ft true vertical depth (TVD) of oil-bearingsand was encountered across multiple reservoirs.During the drilling phase, a 60 ft core was cut inthe E5000 reservoir, with 100% recovery, which

will facilitate further detailed reservoircharacterization, reservoir management andoptimize life of field.

The well will now be completed as a dual oilproducer on the E5000 and E7000 reservoirs,which have total net pay thicknesses ofapproximately 63 ft and 49 ft TVD respectively.The secondary target reservoir, E3000, whichencountered 48 ft TVD of net pay will also beperforated and placed behind a sliding sleeveready for production at a later time.

Completion of the Gbetiokun-4 well was expectedat the end of September with productioncommencing through the recently commissionedEPF immediately thereafter. The EPF is alreadyonline and handling production from previouswells. The Gbetiokun-1 and Gbetiokun-3.Gbetiokun-4 should increase throughput from thecurrent 11-12,000 bpd (gross) to approximately16-17,000 bpd (gross).

Following completion of the Gbetiokun-4 wellthe OES Teamwork rig will commenceoperations on the Gbetiokun-5 development wellwhich is scheduled to provide additionaldrainage points on the D9000 and E2000reservoir zones.

Pakistan Interested in LibyanOil and Gas Sector CooperationLibya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC)chairman, Eng. Mustafa Sanalla met with thePakistani Ambassador to Libya, His ExcellencySajid Iqbal, on August 26. The two partiesemphasized the special relationship between thetwo countries and the potential for enhancedcooperation, especially in the oil sector.

Ambassador Iqbal conveyed Pakistan’s desire toexplore cooperation opportunities in theLibyan oil and gas sector, particularly withregards to seismic surveying and humanresources development. Chairman Sanallawelcomed the proposal and affirmed NOC’sdetermination to implement significantinvestment projects in the forthcomingperiod aimed at sustainably increasingproduction, calling on interested stakeholders toplay an active role in projects through thetender process as advertised on the corporation’sofficial website.

The meeting was also attended by MohamedBoulaaj , manager of NOC’s GeneralHuman Resources Department, and SalahBen Ali, manager of NOC’s InternationalCooperation Office.

ENI Starts Productionof Baltim South West FieldENI announced the successful commissioningand start-up of production at the offshore BaltimSouth West gas field in Egypt. Discovered byENI in June 2016, the field goes on-stream inrecord time, just 19 months after the finalinvestment decision was approved in January2018. This result further confirms the success ofthe strategy adopted by ENI and the company’scapability in pursuing a fast track approach todevelopment projects.

The field is located in shallow waters 12 kms offthe Mediterranean coast of Egypt in theBaltim South development lease. It lies 10 kmfrom the Nooros field, but still within the GreatNooros area. This is an area in which ENIfirst recognized great gas productionpotential and where it is conducting other newexploration projects.

With the start-up of the first well, BSW1, thefield is now producing with an initial rate of 100million standard cubic feet per day (scf/d) froma new offshore platform connected to the existingonshore Abu Madi Gas Plant through a new 44-km long, 26-inch diameter pipeline.

The development program foresees the drillingof a further five wells with the objective ofachieving a production target of 500 Mmscf/d bythe second quarter of 2020. Volumes producedby Baltim South West will further contribute toEgypt’s natural gas export capacity. The overallgas potential from the Greater Nooros Area isapproximately 3 Tcf of gas in place, of whichabout 2 Tcf are in the Nooros field and theremainder in Baltim South West.

ENI, through its subsidiary IEOC, has a 50%interest while BP holds the remaining 50%interest of the contractor’s stake in theBaltim South development lease. The project isexecuted by Petrobel , the operat ingcompany jointly held by ENI and the state firmEgyptian General Petroleum Corp. (EGPC) onbehalf of Medgas, jointly held by ENI, BP,and EGPC.

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Solo Oil to Disposeof Burj Holding in NigeriaSolo Oil, a natural resources investment companyfocused on acquiring a balanced portfolio ofproduction, development and exploration assets,announced that it has signed a sale and purchaseagreement to exit its 20% investment in BurjPetroleum Africa Ltd. (Burj), a company whichhad applied for various undeveloped fields in the2014 Nigerian Marginal Fields Bid Round.

Solo will divest its interest in this non-core assetto Burj Petroleum Corporation, an existingshareholder in Burj, subject to no othershareholders in Burj exercising their pre-emptionrights in relation to the proposed sale by Solo.In doing Solo will so relinquish any future costsassociated with Burj. It is anticipated that thedeal will complete at the beginning of October.

Nigeria to Lower its JVStakes in Bid to Attract InvestmentIn an attempt to attract more foreign investmentinto its oil and gas sector, Timipre Sylva, Nigeria’snew oil minister, said he wants to reduce thegovernment’s stake in its JV businesses withforeign companies.

Sylva, who was appointed in mid-August toreplace Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, has a numberof plans and goals for the industry; lowering thegovernment’s stake to 40% from 55%-60% isone of them. Other goals include raisingproduction to 3 million bpd and cutting productioncosts by at least 5%.

SDX’s MSD Well Hits Oil in West GharibSDX Energy’s MSD-19 development well onEgypt’s West Gharib Concession has been deemeda discovery. In a statement, the company said thewell encountered a commercial oil accumulation.

The well was drilled to a total depth of 4,665 ftand encountered approximately 135 ft of netheavy oil pay across the Asl Formation, with anaverage porosity of 24%. The well was completedas a producer, connected to the central processingfacilities at Meseda and brought online at anaverage stabilized rate over five days ofapproximately 315 bpd.

Mark Reid, CFO and Interim CEO of SDX,commented, “We are pleased to announce afurther drilling success with our MSD-19 well inthe West Gharib Concession, which follows thepositive result in the Rabul-7 well in June. Thewell was brought online in a timely and cost-efficient manner and will provide further support

to our 2019 production guidance for this asset ofgross 4,000-4,200 bpd. Further development wellsare planned for the concession in the next 18months, with the final location of these wellsbeing dependent on government approvals. Afurther update on future drilling will be providedto the market in due course.”

OPL 310 Sees Extension to OperatorsNigeria’s Ministry of Petroleum has approvedLekoil and Optimum Petroleum DevelopmentCompany’s request to extend the explorationlicense on the OPL 310. The extension is for threeyears, subject to the partners paying an extensionfee of $7.5 million within 90 days effective fromAugust 2.

Lekoil and Optimum, who is the operator of OPL310, recently agreed to progress the appraisal ofthe block and subsequent conversion to anOML at the end of the exploration period, as soonas practicable. Following a successfulappraisal, a full field development (FFD) programwill be undertaken for which, Lekoil and Optimumare in advanced discussions with a potentialfunding partner.

Nigeria’s SON Adopts 10 API StandardsIn Nigeria the Standards Organization of Nigeria(SON) adopted 10 of the API’s standards for theWest African country’s oil and gas industry. OsitaAboloma, director-general of SON, said thatstandards would positively impact the industryduring an industry meeting in Lagos.

According to him, “The API standards beingadopted are recognized not only for their technicalspecifications for also for their third partaccreditation, which facilitates acceptance byinternational bodies and has been a cornerstonein developing standards for the worldwide oiland natural gas industry.”

TGS and Schlumbergerto Reimage Red Sea DataTGS and Schlumberger will carry out a new 3Dseismic reimaging project in the Egyptian RedSea. The project will comprise reimaging datafrom three overlapping seismic surveystotaling 3,600 sq km that were acquired between1999 and 2008. The data being reimaged is theonly available 3D data for this area of theRed Sea.

The data includes the integration of all legacyseismic and non-seismic data and will applyadvanced imaging technologies to better definecomplex subsalt structures. Data will be available

before the closing of Egypt’s offshore Red Seainternational license round.

The project, which is supported by industryprefunding, will be carried out by TGS andWesternGeco, the geophysical services productline of Schlumberger.

TGS and Schlumberger have a long-termcommitment with the Egypt Ministry of Petroleumand South Valley Egyptian Petroleum HoldingCompany (GANOPE) to acquire and processseismic data and promote the prospectivity of theEgyptian Red Sea. GANOPE is responsible formanaging Egypt’s hydrocarbon resource potentialunder latitude line 28°.

Touat Export Gas Production BeginsNeptune Energy and Sonatrach saw their first gasexport production from the Touat gas developmentin Algeria. Touat will deliver around 75,000 boepdat peak production. The development, locatedaround 1,400 km southwest of Algiers and closeto Adrar, comprises 19 development wells, a gastreatment plant for gas and stabilized condensatewith a gathering network and export pipelines.

Production from Touat will represent around 6%of Algeria’s total gas exports and will be inproduction for more than 20 years. The projectinvolved the installation of a connection to themain GR5 pipeline, built by Sonatrach, to collectthe gas from southwest Algeria and bring it toHassi R’Mel.

The Touat Project is led by Groupement TouatGaz (GTG Partners), consisting of NeptuneEnergy Touat (65%) and Sonatrach (35%). It isNeptune’s first co-operated project in North Africa.

ION to Launch New Multi-ClientShoot Offshore West AfricaION Geophysical will conduct a new 2D multi-client program offshore West Africa, TheNamibeSPAN program is industry supported andcovers the under explored Namibe basin offshoresouthern Angola.

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The dataset integrates ION Basin SPAN programsin the area, forming a contiguous regionalexploration framework in excess of 65,000 kmalong the West African coast. The program is theconjugate tie with offshore Brazil.

The extension of the program into the Namibebasin provides valuable insight along both marginsand is a framework to identify known discoveriesas potential exploration analogues. ION expectsacquisition to begin imminently with initialdeliverables available for the upcoming licenseround later this year.

“Angola passed several petroleum laws in 2018to make the legislative and fiscal terms morefavorable for investment and to prevent ananticipated decline in oil production,” said JoeGagliardi, senior VP of ION’s Ventures group.“As a result, this basin is garnering significantinterest from E&P companies seeking attractivefrontier investment opportunities. Angolaannounced the launch of their first license roundin eight years in October. Driven by client interest,we are continuing to expand our multi-client datalibrary over the most appealing acreage aroundthe world and we now have over 150,000 kmoffshore Africa.”

NOC Chief Works TowardBringing New Production OnlineNational Oil Corporation (NOC) chairman,Mustafa Sanalla, met with the chairman and CEOof DeGolyer and MacNaughton, John Wallace.The two discussed areas of cooperation betweenthe pair, as well as with NOC subsidiary, ZallafOil and Gas Exploration and Production Company.Also attending the meeting between Sanalla andWallace was NOC board member for Explorationand Production, Abulgasem Shengheer, and DrKhalifa Rajab Abdul Sadiq, chairman of theManagement Committee of Zallaf.

The three companies will work together inorder to prepare technical studies and outlineplans to develop discovered and undevelopedfields. All parties expressed their desire toenhance their relations by initiating reservoir and

field development studies, assessing reservesand preparing development plans for discoveredand undeveloped fields. The corporation seeksto put these plans on the production line as soonas possible in order to increase oil and gasproduction rates and ensure continuous suppliesto power plants.

Lekoil and OptimumReach Agreement on OPL 310Lekoil and Optimum Petroleum DevelopmentCompany have reached a resolution on theirdispute regarding OPL 310 in Nigeria. Optimum,who is the operator of OPL 310, and Lekoilexecuted a legally binding agreement to progressappraisal and development program activities atthe Ogo discovery.

The dispute has been the principal reason thatdevelopment of the block has been delayed. Ratherthan pursue this matter further, the parties haveagreed to use the 22.86% equity stake in the blockas a potential funding and security vehicle forthe accelerated development of the block by anindustry partner or a third party that elects tofarm-in to the block to fund field development.The potential funding partner may be sourced byeither Lekoil or Optimum.

Optimum and LEKOIL are initially targeting atwo-well program over the next 12 to 18 months,subject to receiving an extension of the OPL 310license from the Ministry of Petroleum andsecuring the funding needed for the program. Thepair have agreed to drill two additional appraisal-development wells, contingent on the results ofthe initial two-well appraisal campaign and theassociated extended well tests to be undertaken.All wells will be designed to be compatible withan early production scheme.

They have also agreed to progress the appraisalof the block and conversion to an OML as soonas practicable. Assuming a successful appraisal,a full field development program will beundertaken and embarked upon by Lekoil andOptimum with an industry partner, discussionson which are at an advanced stage. Assuminggranted, which is at the discretion of theDepartment of Petroleum Resources, the OPL toOML conversion is expected to extend the licenseby 20 years.

Nigeria Serving as Example in LocalContent Policy for other African CountriesDuring a recent Media Engagement meeting heldin Abuja, Nigerian Content Development &Monitoring Board (NCDMB) Executive Secretary,

Engr. Simbi Wabote expressed his oppositiontowards the creation of multiple Local ContentBoards. According to him, “the NCDMB canmodify its templates to suit other sectors. In ourview, this is the prudent way to expand and entrenchlocal Content regime in Nigeria.” The NationalAssembly plans to develop the extant Local ContentAct 2010 to include other sectors of the economyfor further domiciliation of contracts.

All signs now point to Nigeria strengthening itsLocal Content implementation and serving as anexample in Local Content Policy for other Africancountries. Celebrating the successes of theNigerian Oil and Gas Industry ContentDevelopment Act nine years after itsimplementation, the industry now confronts newprospects of growth.

Nigeria – having just signed the AfricanContinental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) –is one of the latest African nations to join theentity of 54 African Union States that seek toreduce the economic barriers in pursuit of creatingan Africa-wide customs union. Engr. Wabote alsoperceives joining the entity as a source of benefitsfor local oil and gas service companies withoutthreatening national sovereignty.

He said, “if you take the population of Africa andthe potential market and given the general levelof development of countries, the sky is the limitfor any manufacturer that makes the rightinvestment, has the right quality and partnerships.”

A focus on shortening the contracting cycle,sectorial and market linkages and effectivemonitoring of local content delivery in the countryhas characterized Nigeria’s Local Content agendain recent years.

Communicating the plan for further NigerianContent development will be the priority at the9th Practical Nigerian Content Forum. Engr. SimbiWabote will join over 600 industry stakeholdersat the four-day Practical Nigerian ContentForum on 2 – 5 December in Yenagoa, Bayelsa,Nigeria. The Forum is recognized as the leadingplatform to engage government and industryplayers from across the value chain to maximizebusiness opportunities and increase NigerianContent implementation. Convene with seniorgovernment representatives and the entire oiland gas value chain to discuss the keys tounlocking the industry’s potential throughNigerian Content at the 9th Practical NigerianContent Forum.To find out more, please visit:https://www.cwcpnc.com/.

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Yakaar-2 Gives Kosmosand BP More GasMore gas has been discovered by the partnershipof Kosmos Energy, BP, and Petrosen with thedrilling of an appraisal well of the Yakaar-Terangaresource base. The Yakaar-2 appraisal wellencountered net gas pay in similar high-qualityCenomanian reservoir to the Yakaar-1 explorationwell on the Mauritania/Senegal gas trend.

The Yakaar-2 was drilled approximately nine kmfrom Yakaar-1 and proved up the southernextension of the field. Located offshore Senegal,the Yakaar-2 well was drilled in approximately2,500 meters of water to a total measured depthof around 4,800 meters. The Valaris DS-12 rig,working on behalf of operator BP, will be movedto the Orca-1 exploration well in Mauritania.

The approximate 33,000 sq km of acreage coveredby the BP and Kosmos partnership is estimatedto contain between 50-100 Tcf of natural gasresource potential. These resources include theYakaar-1 well, which was the biggest discoverymade in the industry in 2017, and the GreaterTortue/Ahmeyim field, estimated to contain morethan 15 Tcf of discovered gas resources.

The partners took the FID late last year onPhase 1 of the cross-border GreaterTortue/Ahmeyim development. The decision wasmade following agreement between theMauritanian and Senegalese governments andpartners BP, Kosmos Energy and the state-ownedoil and gas companies of Mauritania and Senegal,SMHPM and Petrosen, respectively.

Second LicensingRound Announced in UgandaThe government of Uganda through the Ministryof Energy and Mineral Development Uganda hasannounced the country’s second licensing round.The round includes five blocks in the AlbertineGraben. These blocks are the Avivi, the Omuka,Kasuruban, Turaco, and Ngaji. The blocks cover1026 sq km, 750 sq km, 1285 sq km, 635 sq kmand 1,230 sq km respectively.

The first of three road shows will be held inLondon at the St. Ermin’s Hotel on October 14.

Houston’s Marriott West Loop by The Galleriawill play host to the second road show on October17, while the final road show on October 22 willbe held in Dubai at the Fairmont.

For an in-depth look at Uganda’s upcominglicensing round, we welcome you to read ourfeature article in the Monthly Focus section,page 26.

Smit Lamnalco Awarded Coral South JobSmit Lamnalco was awarded a contract by ENIto supply integrated maritime services for theFLNG of the Coral South project offshoreMozambique. The execution of the contract willextend over a period of 10 years and will bemainly oriented towards logistics.

The FLNG plant is being developed to have acapacity of 3.4 mtpa and will process gas extractedfrom Offshore Area 4 in Mozambique’s RovumaBasin. The project is due to come onstreambetween 2022 and 2023.

ENI is the operator of the project with a 50%stake. The other partners on Offshore Area 4 areCNPC, Kogas, Galp, and Mozambique’s state-run firm ENH.

TGS Starts New MSGBC SurveyTGS commenced its new survey in Africa’sMSGBC Basin (Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia,Guinea Bissau and Guinea Conakry), offshorethe north-west region of the continenet. TheSenegal Ultra-Deep offshore 3D survey will coverover 4,500 sq km, with a modern broadbandacquisition set-up. It is being undertaken inpartnership with GeoPartners using the BGPProspector vessel. The survey has the fullsupport of Petrosen, Senegal’s state-run oil andgas firm.

This standalone survey borders Jaan, TGS’ 3Ddataset covering the southern portion of theMSGBC Basin. The survey will illuminate playsin the ultra-deep to build upon the success thebasin has experienced with SNE, FAN and Yakaar.The project has a 60-day acquisition timeline,with fast-track data available four months afteracquisition. The full dataset will be available byAugust 2020.

LukOil Proud Ownerof Congo’s Marine XII LicenseNew Age (African Global Energy) Ltd. announcedthat its subsidiary New Age M12 Holdings Ltd.has completed the sale of its 25% non-operatedinterest in the Marine XII License to LUKOILUpstream Congo SAU, a wholly owned subsidiaryof PJSC LUKOIL, for $800 million.

The Marine XII License is located offshoreCongo-Brazzaville and is operated by ENI. NewAge acquired its position in Marine XII in 2009and since then multiple large oil and gasdiscoveries have been made. Successful appraisaland phased development have led to earlyproduction being established from both the Neneand Litchendjili fields.

The sale of New Age’s position in Marine XIImarks the culmination of a successful investmentcycle for the company. New Age will utilize theproceeds from this transaction to further strengthenits balance sheet and to redeploy into its Africanportfolio, including the Marine III license in theRepublic of Congo and its exploration assets.

Europa AwardedInezgane Offshore PermitEuropa Oil & Gas was awarded Morocco’sInezgane Offshore Permit. The permit covers anarea of 11,228 sq km in the Agadir Basin, offshoreMorocco. A formal letter of award from Morocco’sONHYM is expected shortly and, followingconfirmation of its acceptance, Europa will beassigned a 75% interest in, and operatorship of,the license with ONHYM holding the remaining25% interest.

Europa’s focus in the Inezgane Permit is on theLower Cretaceous fan sand play, which is aprolific producer in West Africa. Europa hasidentified that the key elements required for aworking hydrocarbon system, namely source,reservoir and seal, are all present in the licensearea. In addition, a number of large structuraltraps located on the edges and above salt diapirshave already been identified throughout the permitarea. Europa plans to mature several of thesestacked prospects, which each have the potentialto hold over 250 million barrels of oil, to drillablestatus with a view to attracting one or morefarminees to drill an exploration well in the secondphase of the license.

The license, which lies in water depths of between600 and 2,000 meters, has an eight-year term andcomprises three phases. During the two-year initialphase, Europa will undertake a work program,which includes reprocessing 1,300 sq kmof 3D seismic data, as well as other technical

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studies. At the end of the initial phase, Europawill have the option to commit to drilling anexploration well in the second phase or torelinquish the license.

New CNPC Discovery in South SudanA CNPC-led consortium made a 300-million-barrel discovery of recoverable oil in SouthSudan’s northeastern Upper Nile state. It is almostas much as the Oyo Discovery announced inCongo during August.

The exploration well was drilled at a total depthof 1,320 meters near the Adar oilfield in Block3, operated by the Dar Petroleum OperatingCompany (DOPC), which includes CNPC,Petronas, Nilepet, Sinopec and Tri-Ocean Energy.

South Sudan has signed earlier this year anexploration and production sharing agreementwith South Africa’s Strategic Fuel Fund for thehighly prospective Block B2. The move was partof South Sudan’s strategy to diversify its basketof investors and encourage further exploration.

Aminex Farm-Out Complete,Ruvuma Activity to AdvanceAminex has announced that all the conditionsprecedent within the control of Aminex and ARAPetroleum LLC (ARA) detailed in the Ruvumafarm-out agreement have been satisfied.

The company and ARA have seen positivemovements in Tanzania with the governmentactively resolving several long-standing issueswith other operators in country. These positivemovements provide confidence to the companyand ARA who are now prepared to furtheradvance certain pre-drilling operations for theChikumbi-1 well.

Aminex and ARA will advance works so thatdrilling of the well can commence as soon aspracticable following the satisfaction of theremaining conditions precedent, which are thegranting of the Mtwara license extension andgovernment approval for the transfer of interestand operatorship.

Somalia Targets First Oil for 2027Following the signing of a new Petroleum Lawand Revenue Sharing Agreement in May of thisyear, as well as the unveiling of its first everoffshore licensing round (15 blocks covering75,000 sq. km), Somalia is keen to show theworld that it is open for business.

The law breathes new life into a dormant Somalioil and gas sector – several concessions wereawarded to the majors in the late 1980s, but civilwar erupting in the country led to a force majeuredeclaration. Since the government collapse in1993, insecurity and lack of infrastructure havelargely rendered the region a no-go for westerncompanies, leaving local warlords and militiasto claw out territories. Almost 30 years later,Somalia is ready to shake-off past woes and attractglobal participation.

This effort is being spearheaded by Minister ofPetroleum and Mineral Resources, AbdirashidMohamed Ahmed, who recently commented,“this year is a landmark in the development ofSomalia’s natural resources…the Ministry hasworked successfully with the federal memberstates to create an equitable and transparentframework to develop natural resources for thegreater good of Somalia.”

As part of its efforts, Somalia is expected to honormost legacy contracts. An agreement has alreadybeen reached with Shell and ExxonMobil to settlerental fee payments for offshore blocks (part ofa dormant joint venture). However, it does notseem that either company is rushing back intothe country, with Shell stating that “the paymentdoes not affect force majeure status, which remainsin place.”

Ahmed is attending Africa Oil Week 2019 inCape Town this November. He will use thisopportunity to lay out the future vision andobjectives of the Somali national oil and gassector in front of financiers and operators. Thesummit’s Director of Government Relations, PaulSinclair, commented, “we are working closelywith the Minister to ensure that the globalprivate sector benefits from exclusiveopportunities going live in a Somali NationalShowcase at Africa Oil Week.” Find out moreat www.Africa-OilWeek.com.

Oranto Petroleum Empowers LocalBusinesses in Uganda’s Oil & Gas SectorIn line with Oranto Petroleum’s commitment todomestic capacity building and local contentdevelopment across sub-Saharan Africa, thecompany organized a tender workshop in Uganda

in partnership with the Petroleum Authority ofUganda, the Local Government Administrationand KITADI consultancy.

Organized in the region of the Albertine Grabenwhere Oranto Petroleum has its Ngassa licenses,the workshop was attended by over 250participants, a majority of which were businessowners and entrepreneurs.

The workshop notably provided information ontraining and capacity building in Uganda’s oil &gas sector and gave insights to participants intothe best opportunities the oil sector provides inincome generation across agriculture, businessincubation, transportation, storage, wastemanagement, trade and services like banking andinsurance. Critical skills in local content, enterprisedevelopment and innovation were also providedto participants.

Oranto Petroleum was awarded the Ngassa licensein October 2017 and has been making steadyprogress on its work program since then. Thisnotably includes the completion of the ESIAstudies, seismic acquisition, and the Lake drillingsolution study. The company now plans to drillin the next two years and is encouraging localcompanies to be ready to participate in drillingsupport activities.

Morocco’s Lixus CPR CompleteChariot Oil & Gas’ CPR complied by NetherlandSewell & Associates Inc (NSAI) over theadditional prospects in the Lixus Offshore Licensein Morocco is now complete.

According to the NSAI report, material runningroom in five Additional Prospects offers furtherupside in excess of 1.2 Tcf audited 2U prospectiveresources. These resources, in addition to theAnchois Discovery and the Anchois Satelliteprospects, contribute towards an audited totalremaining recoverable resource in excess of2 Tcf (comprising 2C contingent resources and2U prospective resources).

BW to Side-Track Hibiscus DiscoveryBW Offshore subsidiary, BW Energy, will proceedwith a side-track of its DH1BM-1 well on theDussafu Marin Permit, located offshore Gabon.The side-track of the well will confirm if thediscovery is bigger than the company expected.BW started drilling the Hibiscus Updip well(DHIBM-1) in mid-August using the Borr Norvejack-up drilling rig. The well is located about 56km offshore Gabon in 116-meters water depth.At the end of August, BW encounteredhydrocarbons at the Hibiscus Updip prospect.

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The DHIBM-1 well was drilled on the HibiscusUpdip prospect and reached a total depth of3,538 meters.

An oil discovery was made in the Gambaformation with an overall hydrocarbon columnof 33 meters. BW’s preliminary assessmentindicates that the discovery may be larger thanthe gross pre-drill estimates of 12 million barrelsof prospective resources. BW said that Hibiscuswill be a separate development to theRuche complex.

VAALCO to DropDrillbit in Gabon CampaignGabon is set to see some drilling action fromVAALCO Energy soon. The company receivednotification from Vantage Drilling Internationalthat it expects the Topaz jackup rig to be releasedimminently. The rig is currently under contractto ENI in Gabon.

VAALCO plans to spud the Etame 9P appraisalwellbore first, followed back-to-back with theEtame 9H development well. It plans to drill upto three development wells and two appraisalwellbores in the 2019/2020 drilling program.

The company, in a statement, said it believes thatthere is significant reserve upside associated withthe two appraisal wellbores as they may confirmup to approximately five million net barrels of2P oil reserves spread across six well locationstargeted in future drilling campaigns.

In addition, VAALCO said that it has completedits planned full field 2019 maintenance shutdownfor the Etame Marin FPSO and four platforms.

VAALCO has exercised an election to extend thelease contract for the FPSO Petróleo Nautipa atEtame through September 2021, with anadditional one-year option to run throughSeptember 2022.

South Sudan Bid Round On-TapContinuing on its bid to ramp up production anddrive investment into its energy sector, South

Sudan is set to launch its 2020 oil and gas licensinground at the AOP 2019 conference in Cape Town,and, announce the tender for an environmentalaudit for the country’s producing oilfields at thethird annual South Sudan Oil & Power conferenceorganized by AOP. The licensing round is thefirst exploration licensing round since the countrygained its independence in 2011.

On a path to transform its energy sector, SouthSudan set a goal to double its oil production by2020 – returning it to its pre-war production levelsof 350 000 bpd. In achieving this, the countryhas already made significant progress in repairingwells damaged during the civil war and resumedproduction at key oil fields.

In August, the country’s Minister of Petroleumand Mining, Awow Daniel Chuang confirmedthat South Sudan had made a new oil discoveryat the Adar oilfield in Block B3 which is saidto contain over 300 million barrels ofrecoverable oil.

“We are looking at over 300 million reserves withthe hope of more discoveries because there aretwo more wells that are under review,” said theMinister, adding that the country is looking fornew export opportunities.

In March this year, South Africa’s Strategic FuelFund signed an exploration and production sharingagreement (EPSA) for Block B2, following Pan-African explorer, Oranto Petroleum’s signing ofa six year EPSA for Block B3 in 2017, speakingto the country’s continued efforts to bolster thegrowth of its energy sector.

Minister Chuang will lead a delegation from theMinistry of Petroleum and Dar PetroleumOperating Company. The delegation will alsohold meetings at a dedicated country pavilion atAOP 2019.

Anglo Re-enters Congo’s TLP-103CSTAnglo African Oil & Gas plc (AAOG) announcedthat well re-entry operations in the Republic ofthe Congo (RoC) have commenced at theTilapia site in Pointe Noire in preparationfor drilling the TLP-103C sidetrack, nominatedTLP-103CST.

Engineers on site have commenced work tostabilize the well prior to re-entry and the companyhas also contracted Wire-Group to supply andinstall an Isolation Plug which is required toensure the company has the necessary barriers inthe well and which will enable re-entry. Theinstallation of the Isolation Plug is a rig-less

operation, which provides the most cost-effectivesolution, utilizing wireline services from Wire-Group. The isolation plug will be set in preparationfor removal of the completion tree which will bereplaced by subsurface apparatus more appropriatefor drilling and to allow installation of the blow-out preventers ahead of the rig arriving on location.

The company’s management continueddiscussions with the operators of two potentialrigs, both currently situated in the Republic ofthe Congo, with a view to securing a drilling slotduring November.

TMC Wins Greater TortueFLNG Gimi Compressor ContractInternational compressor supplier TMCCompressors of the Seas (TMC) has been awardeda contract to supply the offshore market’s mostenergy efficient compressed air system to GolarLNG’s Gimi FLNG vessel which will operateoffshore Mauritania and Senegal. TMC’s scopeof work includes manufacturing and delivery ofseven large Smart Air compressors to be installedon board the FLNG Gimi. The company has notdisclosed the value of the contract.

FLNG Gimi is currently undergoing a conversionfrom a Moss LNG carrier to a floating LNG(FLNG) production unit at Keppel Offshore &Marine’s Shipyard in Singapore.

When completed, the Gimi FLNG will bestationed at a nearshore hub located on theMauritania and Senegal maritime border as partof the first phase of the Greater Tortue / Ahmeyimproject. The Gimi FLNG is designed to producean average of approximately 2.5 million tonnesof LNG per annum.

In 2017, TMC won a contract to deliver a similarSmart Air compressed air system to Golar LNG’sFLNG Hilli Episeyo.

Tullow’s Ugandan Farm-Down Agreementwith Total and CNOOC TerminatedTullow Oil plc announced that it has beeninformed that the farm-down to Total and CNOOCwas scheduled to terminate at day end August29, 2019 following the expiry of the Sale andPurchase Agreements (SPAs).

Tullow has been unable to secure a furtherextension of the SPAs with its Joint VenturePartners, despite previous extensions to the SPAshaving been agreed by all parties. The terminationof this transaction is a result of being unable toagree all aspects of the tax treatment of the

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transaction with the Government of Uganda whichwas a condition to completing the SPAs. WhileTullow’s capital gains tax position had beenagreed as per the Group’s disclosure in its 2018Full Year Results, the Ugandan RevenueAuthority and the Joint Venture Partners couldnot agree on the availability of tax relief for theconsideration to be paid by Total and CNOOCas buyers.

Tullow will initiate a new sales process to reduceits 33.33% operated stake in the Lake Albertproject which has over 1.5 billion barrels ofdiscovered recoverable resources and is expectedto produce over 230,000 bopd at peak production.The Joint Venture Partners had been targeting a

Final Investment Decision for the Ugandadevelopment by the end of 2019, but thetermination of this transaction is likely to lead tofurther delay.

Sterling Sees Extension in SomalilandSterling Energy was granted a continuedextension to the current period of its OdewaynePSA by the Somaliland government. The expirydates of the exploration periods under the PSAnow take Sterling into 2024.The Third Periodwill end November 2020, the Fourth PeriodMay 2022, the Fifth Period now ends inMay 2023 and the Sixth Period in May 2024. Itshould be noted that the fourth through sixthperiod are optional.

The minimum work obligations for the explorationperiods remain unchanged: (i) the acquisition of500 km of 2D seismic during the Third Period;and (ii) the acquisition of 1,000 km of 2D seismicand one exploration well during the Fourth Period.

Sterling holds a 34% interest in the PSA and willbe carried by Genel, the operator, for the costsof all exploration activities during the Third andFourth Periods of the PSA.

The Odewayne Block covers a very large area(circa 22,000 sq km) onshore southwesternSomaliland, located adjacent to the border withEthiopia. The PSC covers block SL6 and part ofblocks SL7 and SL10.



DOWNSTREAM NEWS

Sulzer Signs AgreementLicensing Pygas Processing TechnologiesSulzer GTC Technology signed an agreementwith JSC SIBUR-Neftehim (SIBUR) to provideits licensed pyrolysis gasoline (pygas) processingtechnologies. The technologies include the designof the fractionation, first and second stagehydrotreating, aromatics extraction and thermalhydrodealkylation technologies for themodernization of a benzene production facilityat SIBUR’s Kstovo olefins production plant nearNizhniy Novgorod, Russia.

The modernized facility will serve as a hub forprocessing full range pygas from several SIBURfacilities, allow production of high-purity benzenewith the lowest cash cost, and recover non-aromatics to be used as cracker feed. Sulzer GTCwill design a new GT-BTX® unit as well asrevamp the existing pygas fractionation; first andsecond stage hydrotreating; and the thermalhydrodealkylation unit to process additional feed.Scope of supply includes the basic engineeringpackage, technical services, proprietary catalyst,solvent and equipment.

“We are pleased to work with such a prestigiouscompany as SIBUR to provide effective solutionsfor producing aromatics from pyrolysis gasolineand modernizing olefins production complexes,”said Ilya L. Aranovich, Sulzer GTC Director ofLicensing for North America, Europe, and CISCountries. He added, “We are excited to extendour track record of providing leading-edgesolutions to improve the economics of naphtha-based crackers for clients in the CIS region andaround the world.”

Savannah Signs Niger-Benin ExportPipeline Transportation ConventionBritish independent Savannah Petroleum PLC,announced the signature on September 15 of aTransportation Convention between ChinaNational Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and theRepublic of Niger in relation to the planned crudeoil export pipeline from the Agadem Rift Basin(ARB) to the Atlantic coast in Benin (the Niger-

Benin Export Pipeline or the Pipeline). ThePipeline is expected to run for c.2,000 km fromthe ARB in Niger to Port Seme on the Atlanticcoast in Benin and is CNPC’s largest ever cross-border crude oil pipeline investment.

The Transportation Convention sets out thecontractual terms between CNPC and the Republicof Niger under which the Pipeline will beconstructed and operated and was signed byNiger’s Minister of Petroleum, His ExcellencyMr. Foumakoye Gado and the President of CNPCExploration and Development Company (CNPC’soverseas development arm, CNODC) WangZhong Cai. Savannah and various other projectstakeholders and dignitaries were also inattendance at the signature ceremony. Wang ZhongCai confirmed that Pipeline construction isexpected to be complete by the end of 2021.

Following the signature of the TransportationConvention, His Excellency PresidentMahamadou Issoufou of Niger was expected toofficially launch the surface infrastructure worksfor the Niger-Benin Export Pipeline at a ceremonyin Koulele, Agadem. The TransportationConvention follows the signature in August ofthe Niger-Benin Pipeline Construction andOperation Agreement between CNPC and theRepublic of Benin, as well as the upstreamapproval granted by the Republic of Niger toCNPC in June 2018 in relation to the AgademProduction Sharing Contract (PSC) ExclusiveExploitation Area 3, the production from whichis expected to be exported from Niger using thePipeline. Under the terms of Savannah’s R1/R2and R3/R4 PSCs, the Petroleum Code of Nigerand its Implementing Decree, Savannah is entitledto access such third-party infrastructure.

NOC UpgradesRas Lanuf Storage CapacityNational Oil Corporation (NOC) subsidiaryHarouge Oil Company has replaced Ras Lanufstorage tank no. 7, which has a capacity of500,000 barrels of crude oil, bringing the port’sstorage capacity to its highest level since 2016.This will help prevent forced oil field shutdowns,especially during winter weather which can disruptport operations.

The company is also preparing to construct andreplace storage tanks no. 4 and no. 12, whichwere damaged during military operations in 2016.The completion of these two tanks will furtherincrease the tank farm capacity at Ras Lanuf.

NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla and the NOCBoard of Directors extended their thanks and

appreciation to all those who contributed to thereplacement of storage tank 7 under difficultcircumstances.

Equatorial Guinea to Build West Africa’sFirst LNG Storage and Regas PlantEquatorial Guinea is set to construct the firstliquefied natural gas (LNG) storage andregasification plant in West Africa, advancingefforts to monetize gas resources through thecreation of a domestic gas-to-power infrastructure.

Located at the Port of Akonikien on the country’smainland, the plant will enable the transportationand storage of LNG from the EG LNG plant atthe Punta Europa Gas Complex on Bioko Island,to Akonikien on the southern border of themainland. It will then be fed into theregasification plant to be distributed to smaller-scale power plants and LNG power stationsthroughout the country, as well as exported toneighboring countries.

The Akonikien project is the first gas-to-powerdevelopment in Equatorial Guinea’s LNG2Africainitiative. Launched by the Ministry of Minesand Hydrocarbons in 2018, the initiative seeksto facilitate the production and trade of LNGthrough the creation of a domestic gas-to-powerinfrastructure and intra-African LNG industry.

Spearheaded by local construction and engineeringfirm Elite Construcciones, the plant will have astorage capacity of 14,000 cubic meters with 12bullet tanks. The tanks are currently the largestfactory-built cryogenic bullet tanks in the worldwith a capacity of 1,228 cubic meters anddimensions of 31 meters by 9.3 meters by 8.8meters. Built by American manufacturer CorbanEnergy Group, each tank is estimated to require12 hours to complete the 12,000-meter distancefrom the port to the new plant. EliteConstrucciones is also installing a truck loadingstation and 12 kms of 10-inch gas and dieselpipelines.

Other major suppliers include pipe supplier PFFGroup, who manufactured 12,400 meters of pipes,shipping agents D&B Shipping Ltd. whofacilitated the shipment of 22, 40-foot open-topcontainers, and Meakin Logistics UK. EliteConstrucciones also worked closely with Germancompanies Noorwerk and ESC on the design andconstruction of the plant.

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Honeywell UOP TechnologyTagged for Algerian Petchem ProjectHoneywell UOP’s C3 Oleflex™ technology hasbeen selected by Sonatrach Entreprise Polymères(STEP) to produce 565,000 mtpa of polymer-grade propylene for a proposed plant in Arzew,Algeria. In addition to technology licensing,Honeywell is providing the basic engineeringdesign as well as services, equipment, catalystsand adsorbents for the plant. Once the plant iscompleted it will represent UOP’s second C3Oleflex unit in North Africa, following an earlieraward in Egypt.

Last year, Honeywell announced that Sonatrachwill use technologies from Honeywell UOP toproduce cleaner-burning transportation fuelsat its Skikda Refinery on the easternMediterranean coast of Algeria. UOP alsoannounced that Sonatrach will use UOPtechnologies, including C4 Oleflex, at its Arzewfacility to produce 200,000 metric tons per yearof methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), a high-octanegasoline additive that reduces emissions inautomobile exhaust.

Honeywell UOP’s C3 Oleflex technology usescatalytic dehydrogenation to convert propane topropylene and is designed to have a lower cashcost of production and higher return on investmentcompared to competing dehydrogenationtechnologies. Its low energy consumption, lowemissions and fully recyclable, platinum-alumina-based catalyst system helps minimize its impacton the environment. The independent reactorand regeneration design of the Oleflex technologyhelps maximize operating flexibility andonstream reliability.

Sonatrach Total Entreprise Polymères (STEP) isa joint venture between Algeria’s state oil companySonatrach S.p.A. (51%) and France’s Total S.A.(49%). The STEP joint venture was created in2018 to carry out the joint petrochemical projectin Arzew.

Funds Needed for NLNG Train 7Nigeria LNG is looking for funds for theconstruction of the $10 billion seventh train atits LNG facility in Nigeria. According to a Twitterpost from Nigeria LNG, the FID will be signedby the end of October.

The news follows the signing of an LoI with theSCD Group consortium led by Saipem for theEPC on Train 7. “With the signing of the LoI wehope that by the end of October a Final InvestmentDecision will be signed for Train 7. This willensure we attain our ambition of increasing our

production by 35%,” Nigeria LNG announcedon Twitter.

In order to finance the construction of Train 7,Nigeria LNG is now looking to raise as much as$2 billion from the top 10 domestic lenders, TonyAttahm company CEO told Bloomberg. Thecompany will go for the remainder of the fundingfrom foreign banks and export credit agencies.

“We have done the financial market pitch to knowwho has capacity,” Attah told Bloomberg.

New Dehydrogenation Plant in ChinaDesigned to Produce over 1 mtpa of OlefinsClariant announced the successful startup of itsCATOFIN catalyst at Hengli Group’s new mixed-feed dehydrogenation plant in Dalian, China. Thenew unit combines propane dehydrogenation(PDH) with iso-butane dehydrogenation (BDH)process technologies, and it will produce over1 million tons of olefins per year – becomingthe world’s largest plant using CATOFINcatalyst technology.

The state-of-the-art process pairs Clariant’sCATOFIN catalyst together with McDermott’sLummus process technology and is proven toenable high reliability and yields, cost efficiencyand simplicity. In addition to the CATOFINcatalyst, the facility is using Clariant’s innovativeHeat Generating Material (HGM) to produce itson-purpose olefins.

Founded in 1994, Hengli Group is one of China’sforemost suppliers of petrochemicals. HengliGroup’s new dehydrogenation plant in Dalian isdesigned to process 500 KTA of propane and 800KTA of iso-butane feeds to produce propyleneand iso-butylene.

CATOFIN is an extremely reliable technologyfor light paraffin dehydrogenation. Operating atthermodynamically-advantaged reactor pressureand temperature to maximize yield, the processrelies on Clariant’s highly selective CATOFINcatalyst and the company’s patented metal-oxideHGM to deliver high conversion rates. With thesuccessful startup of the Hengli plant, this nowmarks Clariant’s 21st CATOFIN unit in operation,totaling over 9 million tons of olefin productioncapacity globally.

USTDA SupportsGuinea’s LNG AmbitionsThe USTDA has issued a grant to West AfricaLNG Group Guinea SA (WA-LNG) for afeasibility study to assess the economic, financialand technical viability of a potential LNGreceiving terminal and distribution network nearthe Port of Kamsar in the Boké region of Guinea.The study, which will be conducted by PlumEnergy LLC, supports the diversification ofGuinea’s energy sector, which currently dependson hydropower, diesel and heavy fuel oil.

The introduction of LNG into the market allowsfor the use of a more sustainable, reliable,year-round energy source. WA-LNG willdistribute natural gas or LNG to end-users,initially including bauxite producers and anagro-industrial park supported by the AfricanDevelopment Bank.

This project advances the goals of the ElectrifyAfrica Act, the U.S. government’s Power Africa,Prosper Africa and Doing Business in Africainitiatives.

CIS Completes Pile-Drivingfor Petchem Terminal in JordanCIS completed a major pile-driving operation inconjunction with construction of a new$240 million state-of-the-art phosphatesterminal in Jordan. The terminal is purpose-builtto export and handle upwards of six million tonsof rock phosphate in bulk annually. It is locatedin the South Port section of the New Port ofAqaba, and features storage facilities, off-loadingsystems and handling and ship-loadingequipment.

CIS performed a series of pile-driving operationsto form the foundations of the new terminal,which features a new dry bulk export jetty anddust and spillage control facilities.

The storage plant, load transfer building, andberthing maritime terminal for exportingphosphates are located onshore. Offshore, thecomplex is comprised of a 190m-piloted berthingarea with two parallel-to-coastline structures thatsupport two loading bays, two mooring dolphins,an access bridge and two bridges that connectthe structures.

As working nearshore poses unique challengesCIS used two hydraulic hammers simultaneously;one of its S-150 hydraulic hammers situatedoffshore on a crane barge and a second positionedonshore. As a result, 16 piles measuring 36 inches

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were driven to a maximum penetration of85.02 ft to ensure that the essential onshorefacilities would be built on solid foundations.

Following completion of the pile-driving phasecarried out as part of the construction of theonshore portion of the jetty approach, CIS beganworking on the offshore construction phase. Thisinvolved driving 149 jetty support piles measuringØ914mm (36 inches) as part of the constructionof berthing structure and three bridges. Again,CIS drove the jetty support piles with pinpointaccuracy with the aid of surveyors and thehydraulic hammer on the piling crane. Every pilewas safely driven to its intended target depthwithout incurring a single Lost Time Incident(LTI). All 165 piles were driven safely andefficiently, well within the requisite timeframefor completion.

Al Gharbia Pipe CompanyReaches Operational MilestoneSENAAT revealed that Al Gharbia Pipe Companyreached an operational milestone by commencingcommercial production of large diameter, high-quality sour grade steel pipes in Abu Dhabi. AlGharbia Pipe Company – a subcontractor ofHabshan Trading – will begin work to supply

conductor pipes for Hail and Ghasha offshoresour gas fields by ADNOC.

Established as a JV between SENAAT and twoof Japan’s leading companies in the steel sector– JFE Steel Corporation and Marubeni-ItochuSteel, Al Gharbia Pipe Company is the firstindustrial joint venture to take place between AbuDhabi and Japan in the UAE that will strengthenthe rich history of commercial projects connectingthe two nations.

The 200,000-square meter plant, which brokeground in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi(KIZAD) in 2016, is the UAE’s first large-diameter, sour service capable, welded steel pipe

project that has been set up with an AED 1.1billion investment to strengthen the country’sindustrial supply chain in line with Abu DhabiEconomic Vision 2030 and Abu Dhabi IndustrialStrategy 2021.

The state-of-the-art facility will manufacturelongitudinally welded large-diameter, thick wall,sour service, steel pipe to service the region’sconstruction and energy sector.

The plant’s new line is designed to make pipesup to 13 meters in length with an outside diameterranging from 18 to 56 inches, and the maximumwall thickness of 44.5 millimetres. Once fullyoperational, the plant’s annual production capacityis set to reach 240,000 tons, of which around 40percent will be exported to neighboring marketsin the GCC and greater Middle East, as well asNorth and East Africa.

Early this year, Al Gharbia Pipe Companyreceived an approval from American PetroleumInstitute (API) to supply products to oil and gasindustry, in addition to an approval from ADNOCfor sour and non-sour pipes, which qualifies AlGharbia as a potential supplier for ADNOCprojects with a high In-Country Value score.

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NEW PRODUCTS & SERVICES

CGG announced the launch by Sercel ofGPR, a new Ocean Bottom Node (OBN).GPR leverages the proven high performanceof Sercel’s QuietSeis® broadband digitalsensor technology to collect superior datafor accurate seismic imaging compared todata collected by conventional sensors. Sercelhas jointly developed GPR in partnershipwith BGP.

The launch of GPR coincides with thecontinuing growth and maturity of the globalnode market and further strengthens CGG’sextensive portfolio of innovative productsand services, all designed to reduce the risksand increase the success of its clients’reservoir exploration and developmentefforts.

Sercel and BGP have drawn on theirlongstanding partnership and complementary

seismic expertise andexperience to design,develop and deployGPR. The new node hassuccessfully completedsea trials and valuableinput from BGP fromthe field has ensuredGPR’s performance isprecisely tailored tomeet today’s industryrequirements. It has acompact design andbenefits from the fidelity and ultra-quietperformance of QuietSeis as well as flexibledeployment options.

Pascal Rouiller, Sercel CEO, said: “GPR isa significant addition to CGG’s preeminencein the growing OBN market. It confirms ourcommitment to address evolving industry

challenges, and through our equipment,geoscience and multi-client strengths, enablesus to deliver a unique suite of OBN solutionsto our clients. Sercel’s launch of GPRprovides our clients with an advanced newtechnology to revitalize exploration andproduction opportunities in basins acrossthe globe.”

Sercel Launches GPR – A New Ocean Bottom Node

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Schlumberger has introduced the Ora*

intelligent wireline formation testingplatform. The platform leverages a newarchitecture and metrology for enhancedperformance, enabling dynamic reservoircharacterization in all conditions, includingwhere previously impossible.

The Ora platform is rated to 200 degC (392degF) and 35,000 psi and includes a newfocused radial probe, a dual-inlet dual packer,labora tory-grade met ro logy, newmeasurements, and the highest flow ratepump in the industry. The digitally enabledhardware can automate complex workflows,reduce operating time by more than 50% anddeliver the highest precision fluidanalysis and zero contamination samples.Furthermore, deep transient testing is nowpossible on wireline.

The platform is built on a digitalinfrastructure, providing a new customerexperience, enabling real-time decisions ina cloud-native environment.

“Characterizing dynamic reservoir propertiesis becoming more critical and difficult than

ever as dri l l ing forhydrocarbons is movingtowards complex geologiesa n d c h a l l e n g i n genvironments. Moreover,analyzing this data to makebusiness decisions can takeweeks if not months,” saidDjamel Idri, president,Wireline, Schlumberger.“The Ora platform wasbuilt to address thesechallenges, with newwireline formation testing hardware anddigital edge solutions enabling our customersto make faster and better decisions.”

The Ora platform has successfully completedmore than 30 field trials worldwide in avariety of operating environments in theNorth Sea, US Gulf of Mexico, West Africa,Middle East, North Africa, and CentralAmerica. In Mexico for Pemex, the Oraplatform was the first ever wireline formationtester to collect high-quality gas condensatesamples in a challenging carbonate formationwith permeability below 0.03 mD and 182degC (360 degF) at 20,000-psi pressure. This

helped Pemex announce the tripling ofestimated reserves for Mexico’s mostimportant land discovery in the last 25 years.

In deepwater Gulf of Mexico for TalosEnergy, the Ora platform obtained high-quality downhole fluid analysis data in achallenging well geometry, which wasimmediately integrated and visualized in thereservoir context. The reservoir model wasthen updated using a bespoke Schlumbergerreservoir fluid geodynamics workflow,enabling real-time assessment of lateral andvertical connectivity for early completionsdecisions.

Schlumberger Introduces Cutting-EdgeIntelligent Wireline Formation Testing Platform

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Clariant Opens HTE Lab in Houston

Clariant has opened its next High ThroughputExperimentation (HTE) Laboratory inHouston, Texas. The location is key as thenew facility will be the first of its kindsupporting the oil & gas industry, offeringnew and sophisticated solutions forcustomers. This lab is part of a global Clariantinitiative to expand HTE capabilities to allClariant business units, including directsupport for oil services in North America,the Asia Pacific region, Latin America, Africaand the North Sea.

HTE is an innovative approach andm e t h o d o l o g y w h e r e a u t o m a t e dinstrumentation, specialized software toolsand alternative techniques are able to provideoptimized formulations in a rapid timeframe.While it has been widely used in otherindustries for many years, Clariant is the firstcompany to adopt this technology for the oil& gas industry as a standard tool.

“This is an exciting, and unique, new offeringfor the oil & gas industry, and, being in suchclose proximity to so many customers, meansthat we can offer superior, faster service,”

said Jonathan Wylde, Head ofInnovation and ApplicationDevelopment Clariant Oil andMining Services. “With ourstate-of-the-art equipment in thelab, advanced research concepts,and potential customization forspecific projects, our researchersare now able to identify newformulations and synergisticblends for specific customercrudes, ultimately reducing thetime to market for newproducts.”

As a new addition to the existing lab locatedat Clariant Oil Services headquarters, Clariantspecialist chemists and innovation expertsare now able to utilize miniaturization,parallelization, intelligent design andenhanced analytics – all proven to increaseefficiency and productivity. The facility willhelp to meet current and outstanding needsin the oil & gas industry, with specialemphasis on pour point depressants, hydrateinhibitors, asphaltene inhibitors, corrosioninhibitors and scale inhibitors.

“Static environments, like factory assemblylines, are easy to automate. In contrast, anR&D environment requires a special solutionto keep pace with its dynamic nature,” saidLucius Kemp, Clariant’s Global Head ofHigh Throughput Experimentation, GroupTechnology and Innovation. “One must havea highly flexible concept with very shortintegration times to reach automatedefficiency. As a global leader in the field, wehave designed our HTE lab with‘standardized flexibility’ to achieve this.”

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Halliburton IntroducesCommanderTM Full Bore Cement Head

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Halliburton Company unveiled theCommanderTM Full Bore Cement Head, aproduct that enables rotation andreciprocation of 4 ½ – 6-inch productionstrings to help increase reliability and reducerisk during the well cementing process.Advanced wireless functionality and fasterrig-up time help increase efficiency andimprove safety for land-based cement jobs,particularly in unconventional formations.

The Commander Full Bore Cement Headcan rotate pipe during a cement job toimprove cement coverage, prevent

channeling, reduce communication betweenfrac stages and help maximize production.Wireless capability allows for less cost-prohibitive equipment on site, and helpseliminate the requirement for personnel tohoist, load, and manually deploy plugs onactive rigs. The head prevents casing wiperplugs from being launched out of sequenceand offers real-time verification that the plugshave launched successfully.

This helps improve safety and efficiencywhile setting dependable cement barriers.Over 100 jobs have been executed to date

with the Commander Full Bore Cement Head,with average rig-up times as fast as 30minutes and a reduction in time personnelspend in the red zone.

“We are building on our legacy of 100 yearsin the oilfield cementing business withexciting and innovative new products,” saidJim Collins, vice president of Cementing.“We’re bringing industry-leading productsto cost-sensi t ive and chal lengingunconvent ional operat ions , whi lesimultaneously reducing unwanted risk atthe well site.”


nvestment in deepwater exploration and development is on therise. Although the often prolific subsalt plays offer high rewardsfor explorers, they can bring potentially higher development costs

and risks. For fields and prospects in particularly complex settings,existing towed-streamer datasets are reaching their technical limits.Despite dramatic recent improvements in streamer data processing andvelocity models, there can still be considerable uncertainty in theinterpretation of these images.

With the resulting growth in large-scale ocean bottom node (OBN)surveys to provide greater interpretation certainty, the industry isentering a new era in subsalt imaging. At this year’s SEG AnnualConference in San Antonio, CGG presented a range of papers showcasingthe latest OBN imaging technologies and case studies.

Better, data-driven salt velocity modelsA common thread in these presentations is the ability to take fulladvantage of the valuable low-frequency, full-azimuth, ultra-long offsetinformation recorded in OBN surveys to drive full-waveform inversion(FWI) velocity model building. Yao et al. determine that, for theStampede field in the Gulf of Mexico, lower frequencies and ultra-long offsets from OBN data are key factors for increasing the detailof complex sediment inclusions in the salt velocity model using FWI.

The combination of FWI and OBN data also supports a data-drivenapproach to velocity model building which can reduce project cycletime. Traditional velocity model building sequences based on manualsal t interpretat ionrequire an accurate saltmodel to obtain animage that can beinterpreted. Recentd e v e l o p m e n t spioneered by CGG,particularly time-lagFWI, have streamlinedthe update of saltmodels, alleviating themanual interpretationbottleneck and bringinga step-change to subsaltimaging in some of themost complex areas.

A case study update from the Santos Basin by Jouno et al. shows that,with a reasonable initial model, time-lag FWI applied to OBN data canrecover fine internal detail of the stratified evaporite sequence and thepre-salt sediments.

The use of sparse OBN surveys designed purely to provide informationfor velocity model building has been proposed and is the focus of astudy performed on the Atlantis field (Mei et al.). The study indicatesthat OBN spacing of 1 km x 1 km can be sufficient to achieve asatisfactory velocity model for subsalt imaging using time-lag FWI.This approach provides one strategy to achieve imaging uplift fromexisting streamer datasets across large areas.

A bright future for OBN ImagingOBN imaging and FWI technology will be hot topics in the industryfor years to come, particularly in areas with complex salt overburdenswhich obscure the reservoir. Work continues on improving variousaspects of OBN processing, including internal multiple attenuation(Pereira et al.) and application of advanced imaging techniques, suchas least-squares reverse time migration (Liu et al.), to deliver morereliable subsalt reservoir images and attributes. For FWI, discussionscontinue on improving starting models and incorporating “more physics”into the algorithms to improve accuracy where effects such as anisotropyand absorption are significant.

These ongoing developments promise further improvements in subsaltimaging which will continue to reduce exploration risk.

I

TECHNOLOGY AND SOLUTIONS

Getting Closer to Deepwater Reservoirswith Pioneering OBN Imaging

Getting Closer to Deepwater Reservoirswith Pioneering OBN Imaging

Benefits of latest OBN imaging technology open door to new era of subsalt imaging

By CGG

Time-lag FWI using OBN data in the Gulf of Mexico with a complex sediment-salt interface close to the deep baseof salt. Before the FWI update: (a) legacy velocity model without smoothing and (b) OBN RTM stack image producedusing the legacy model. After the TL-FWI update: (c) updated velocity model from FWI using OBN data and (d) OBN

RTM stack image produced using the FWI-updated velocity model (image courtesy of CGG).


arlier this year, Uganda’s Ministry ofEnergy and Mineral Development issueda Request for Qualification (RFQ)

inviting interested firms and/or consortia to submitStatements of Qualifications within a period ofnot less than three months for government todetermine their eligibility to participate in thislicensing round. The submission deadline wasrecently extended until November 22, allowingadditional review time for interested parties

The blocks on offer in Uganda’s secondcompetitive bid round are nearby some of thecountry’s major oil blocks that are currently heldby Tullow, Total E&P and CNOOC Uganda Ltd.So far, an estimated 6.5 billion barrels of oil inplace and 500 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of naturalgas has been confirmed from exploration workundertaken in less than 40% of the AlbertineGraben, leaving much prospectivity for newexploration.

The BlocksFor the second licensing round (the first was heldin 2016), five blocks will be on offer, all highlyprospective exploration areas with good datacoverage available. Highlights on each of theblocks are summarized below:

Turaco Coucal Block (Semliki Area): 2D and3D seismic surveys were undertaken in theSemliki Basin and three exploration wells weredrilled on the Turaco prospect in approximatelythe same geographical position (between 1998and 2004). All the three wells encountered oil,but the Turaco-3 well was specifically used totest the oil zones. Various reports and datasetsare available for this 635-sq km block.

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MONTHLY FOCUS

Uganda has announced that it will be hosting its second competitive licensing round. The blocks on offer, located in the prolificAlbertine Graben, sit next to some of the country’s largest oil finds.

Uganda Open for Business



Riwu Omuka Block: This 750 sq km block is located in the formerExploration Area 1 in the districts of Buliisa, Packwach, Nwoya andNebbi. 2D seismic surveys were undertaken and three wells were drilledin this area (Riwu-1, Ondyek-1, and Raa-1) which did not encounterany oil. This block is located in proximity of the Buliisa oil fields whichhave been issued production licenses. It is also in proximity to theBuliisa Central Processing Facility. Additional reports and data are alsoavailable for this block.

Kasuruban Mutonta Block: Located in the districts of Hoima,Buliisa and Masindi, the block has seen three wells drilled. The Taitai-1, Karuka-1 and Karuka-2 were drilled on the Taitai and Karukaprospects during 2007. None of the three wells encounteredhydrocarbons. 2D seismic data, as well as additional reports are available.The block is in close proximity to the Buliisa and Kaiso-Tonya oilfields and production infrastructure. The size of the block isapproximately 1,285 sq km.

Ngaji Mpundu Block: The block is located in the districts ofRukugiri, Kanungu and Kasese. The Ngaji-1 well was drilled during2009 and did not encounter any hydrocarbons. The prospect is heavilyfaulted and compartmentalized. However, an optimal location withina good migration passage was not drilled which may explain thefailure to encounter hydrocarbons. Based on the 2D seismic and theaerogravity data that was acquired, there are other drillable locationsin this area. The areas also have various reports available and the blocksize is approximately 895 sq km.

Mvule Avivi Block (Rhino Camp Area): Located in the districts ofMadi-Okollo, Adjumani, Obongi and Yumbe, it has about 200 km ofhigh quality 2D seismic data and an Airborne Tensor Gradiometry wasalso acquired over the Block. Three exploration wells (Mvule-1, Iti-1and Avivi-1 were drilled but did not encounter any hydrocarbons. Basedon the 2D seismic data, the resource accounting of the hydrocarbonsin place in the entire Block indicates highly risked recoverable reserves.Various reports are available and the license area is approximately1,026 sq km.

Some of the additional reports mentioned and available for the variousblocks include geochemical and palynological reports, field mappingreports, borehole seismic reports, geological end of well reports,mudlogging reports, and well completion reports, among others.

Award ProcessOnce government has evaluated the submissions under the RFQ, thequalifying firms will then be issued a detailed request for bids which

will be evaluated bythe Government. Thecompanies submitting thebest evaluated bids for eachof the blocks will proceedto negot ia t ions wi thGovernment prior to signingp r o d u c t i o n s h a r i n gagreements. The licensinground is expected to beconcluded with the awardof Petroleum ExplorationLicenses to successful firms.

The award of licenses willbe guided by the Petroleum(Exploration, Developmentand Production) Act 2013and the National Oil andGas Policy for Uganda (2008). It follows the first license round whichwas conducted in 2016 and resulted in the award of three licenses; twolicenses (Ngassa shallow play and Ngassa Deep play) were awardedto Oranto Petroleum Ltd. and one license (Kanywataba block) wasawarded to Armour Energy Ltd.

Details on the licensing round are scheduled to be presented at upcomingconferences, including Africa Oil & Power being held in CapeTown during October, as well as at Africa Oil Week in November,also in Cape Town. Roadshows have also been scheduled forHouston, London, and Dubai for investors to learn more about theavailable license areas. The first of these three road shows will be held inLondon at St. Ermin’s Hotel on October 14; Houston’s Marriott West Loop bythe Galleria will play host to the second road show on October 17, while thefinal road show on October 22 will be held in Dubai at the Fairmont. Alternately,more information on the second licensing round can be found atwww.petroleum.go.ug or by contacting the Commissioner’s office [email protected] or [email protected].

The five blocks are available to potential applicants after goingthrough the prequalification stage successfully. Entry into theprequalification stage is subject to prior payment of a non-refundableapplication fee of $20,000. Upon the payment, the RfQ document canthen be taken at the Petroleum Exploration, Development and ProductionDepartment in Entebbe or delivered through an email by the Manager,Second Licensing Round. The payment of the Application fee shall bemade to the following bank account:

Account Name: Uganda Petroleum FundBank Name: Bank of UgandaAccount Title: Uganda Petroleum Fund – USDAccount No: 003300328400010Swift Code: UGBAUGKA

Sealed applications for qualifications must be delivered to theaddress below at or before November 22, 2019 at 10:00 am localtime to:

The Permanent Secretary,Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development

a. Closing date for receipt of Applications for Qualification

b. Evaluation of Expressions Applications for Qualification

c. Display of Qualified Applicants

d. Issue of Request for Proposal/ Bidding Document to Qualified Applicants

6 - 10 January 2020

ACTIVITY DATE

22 November 2019

25 November –16 December 2019

19 - 20December 2019

Caroil 2 rig during drilling of JobiEast 7A well in Nwoya District

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he International Energy Agency estimates that, by 2040, Africacould overtake Russia as a global gas supplier – and clearlySenegal and Mauritania will have a say in this.

Straddling across the maritime border of these two West African nations,more than 2,000 meters below the sea surface, there lies the GreaterTortue play, which is estimated to contain 25Tcf of recoverable gas,15 Tcf of which lies in the Tortue / Ahmeyin fields, and will feed aworld-scale 10 Mtpa LNG project that is on track to deliver first gasin H1 2022.

The Greater Tortue / Ahmeyin (GTA) project will produce gas froma deepwater subsea system, via a FPSO, and the produced gas will beprocessed to separate the liquids and transported onto a breakwater-protected FLNG facility at a nearshore hub located on the Mauritaniaand Senegal maritime border. The FLNG facility is expected to deliveran average of approximately 2.5 million Mtpa during phase 1 of theGTA project. The project will provide LNG for global export, as wellas make gas available for domestic use in both Senegal and Mauritania.

The joint development of these game-changing resources requiresstrong cooperation between the governments of Senegal and Mauritania,and in recent times that is exactly what we have been witnessing.Having ironed out their differences, largely thanks to the efforts ofPresidents Macky Sall and (then-incumbent) Mohamed Ould AbdelAziz, Senegal and Mauritania signed on February 9, 2018 an Inter-States Cooperation Agreement on the development of the GTA fields,which sets out the regulatory framework applicable to the operations,which are to be conducted and financed on a 50/50 basis, with theresources also being shared in that proportion – at least during the firstfive years as from commencement of production, at which point aredetermination of the apportionment factor is to be made.

Further to and in tandem with the Inter-States Cooperation Agreement,Senegal and Mauritania signed on December 21, 2018 an AdditionalAct to said Agreement, defining the tax and customs frameworkapplicable to the subcontractors involved in the GTA Project. It wasfollowing this development that British major BP and American juniorKosmos Energy made their Final Investment Decision.

Following, we take a brief look at some of the most relevant featuresof these instruments. For the preparation, the two West African nations

retained the assistance of international experts so as to ensure that theywere aligned with international practice.

The Inter-States Cooperation Agreement:Is aimed at an efficient development of the GTA fields (based on

economies of scale, the mutualization of expenses, and the creation ofsynergies), to avoid the drilling of unnecessary wells and the constructionof unnecessary facilities, and to ensure an equitable sharing of theinvestment expenditure and of the resources;

Calls for the negotiation and execution of a unitization agreementbetween the contractors (i.e. the two NOCs, BP and Kosmos), whichis to be approved by both States;

Provides that, temporarily, production will be shared on an equalbasis, the same applying to the related exploration, development,production and abandonment costs (with the expenditure made priorto the unitization qualifying as expenditure relating to the unitizedarea);

Foresees that the first redetermination of the apportionment factormay only take place after five years as from commencement ofproduction (and thereafter every five years, or upon demonstration, onthe basis of new material data, that the then current apportionment doesnot reflect the actual geological distribution of the resources);

Provides that both States shall assist the contractors in obtaining thefinancing required, including by issuing comfort letters and otherassurances;

Imposes local market supply requirements on the contractors, in linewith their respective petroleum contracts, with the quantities of gas tobe made available being defined in the GTA fields’ development plan;

Calls for the execution of an Additional Act to define the tax andcustoms framework applicable to the subcontractors, service providersand suppliers involved in the development and exploitation of the GTAfields;

Reiterates the local content requirements, obligations and commitmentsto which the contractors are subject, under the laws of Senegal andMauritania and their respective petroleum contracts, in terms of the

T

DOWNSTREAM FOCUSBy Hugo Moreira

Miranda & Associados

Greater Tortue / AhmeyinLNG Project

A GAME CHANGER FOR SENEGAL AND MAURITANIA


priority in the recruitment (and training)of the staff and in the procurement of goodsand services required for the operationsthat is to be afforded to Senegalese andMauritanian individuals and companies;

Entrusts the States with ensuring that thecontractors set up a joint escrow account,into which the funds required for theabandonment and reclamation of the GTAfields are to be deposited as from the firstyear of production; and

Institutes a Joint Advisory Committee,comprising three representatives from eachState, charged with facilitating theimplementation and monitoring of the Inter-States Cooperation Agreement.

In turn, the Additional Act:Sets out the tax and customs framework applicable to the

subcontractors, service providers and suppliers involved in thedevelopment and exploitation of the GTA fields, which shall be inplace and apply throughout the duration of phase 1 of the project;

Is based on three fundamental principles: (i) harmonization of thetax provisions of the two States, (ii) equitable sharing of the tax andcustoms revenues, and (iii) simplification of the formalities to whichthe subcontractors are subject, by means of the creation of joint entitiesregrouping the tax administrations of the two States;

Defines the concepts of resident and non-resident subcontractors (adistinction in connection with which the concept of permanentestablishment is paramount), clarifying that the affiliates of the contractorsdo not qualify as subcontractors for the purposes of the Additional Act;

Provides for a significant number of exemptions and other benefits,from VAT to turnover tax, from customs duties on the importation ofmaterials, machinery, equipment, vessels, platforms and other itemsto investment income tax, from charges on financial and bankingtransactions to property tax;

Creates an annual tax on profits (which replaces the equivalent taxesotherwise payable in Senegal and Mauritania), subject to either anactual profits regime or to a deemed profits regime; the tax rate is 25%,and in the case of deemed profits regime, it applies (by withholding)to a deemed profit corresponding to 16% of the turnover. For non-resident subcontractors, this withholding shall only apply to the provisionof services;

Institutes an Inter-States Tax Committee and a Joint Agency, thelatter being entrusted with the management, assessment, monitoringand collection of the applicable taxes, duties and charges, andcontains significantly detailed provisions on its inspection duties andpowers; and

Calls for the enactment of regulations, jointly by the Senegalese andMauritanian Ministers of Finance, to further detail the terms ofimplementation of certain requirements and obligations imposed bythe Additional Act (such as the preparation of transfer pricingdocumentation files), and the composition, organization, operationand powers of the Inter-States Tax Committee and the Joint Agencycreated thereby.

While the Inter-States Cooperation Agreement is more directly aimedat the Senegalese and Mauritanian States themselves, at their respectiveNOCs and at the private members of the GTA contractors, the AdditionalAct is specifically and expressly applicable to those already involved,or contemplating being involved, in the project – be it as subcontractors,service providers and/or suppliers. It is also critical to bear in mindthat the legal and operational frameworks instituted by these twoproject-specific instruments do not supersede, rather they supplement,the standards and requirements set forth in the otherwise applicablelaws and regulations of Senegal and Mauritania – in conjunction withwhich they will have to be interpreted and enforced, an exercise weanticipate that at times may prove challenging.

But overcoming challenges is something that Senegal and Mauritaniaare familiar with. Simultaneously, both countries are aware of whatthe success of the GTA project could mean to them – conservativeestimates place each State’s revenues in the region of $500 million peryear. For now, these two West African nations have been demonstratingthat they can work together inventively to achieve common goals, andare making every effort to showcase the GTA Project as an exampleof union, peace and development, which is expected to fast-track themin their path to joining the regional league of Oil &Gas producers.

*Hugo Moreira is a Managing Associate at Miranda & Associadosand has 15+ years of experience in oil & gas matters in lusophoneand francophone Africa, including Senegal (he is assistant coordinatorof the respective Jurisdiction Group) and Mauritania. Hugo may becontacted at [email protected].

Greater Tortue Ahmeyim LNG Development

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n a move to help address artisan skills shortages in the widerpetrochemical industry as well as high unemployment levels inthe South Durban community in South Africa, Engen has backed

a two-year learnership program that will provide full funding for20 learners.

The program, which provides a 100% fee-free college service, targetspersons from underprivileged backgrounds who have struggled toaccess mainstream education and training.

Successful applicants attend satellite classes run by Jirah Academy atFairvale High School, which is located across the road from Engen’srefinery in South Durban.

The Jirah Academy was established in 2014 and functions as acommunity-based satellite campus catering specifically to previouslydisadvantaged individuals within South Durban and extendedcommunities of the greater Durban area.

“The Academy is entirely donor and management funded and operatesas a fees-free college satellite campus that provides engineering studiesto learners who are suited to become artisans and technicians, or whowant to pursue careers in engineering,” says Unathi Magida, Engen’shead of Transformation and Stakeholder Engagement.

Courses offered include a Bridging Course (focusing on maths andscience education) and mainstream N1/N2/N3 Engineering Studies.

The Jirah Academy also provides a second chance to previouslydisadvantaged individuals who have no access to further education ortraining, to pursue a formal qualification and boost their chances ofemployment.

Adds Magida: “We have also partnered with industry in the SouthDurban area who have agreed to provide apprenticeships to theselearners once they have graduated or assist in helping them findemployment.”

Three graduates from last year’s intake currently work at the Engenrefinery.

“We are very proud to be part of this immensely rewardingprogram – which benefits the learner, the company andthe country.

“When somebody succeeds because of a one-in-a-thousand chance thatthey grabbed with both hands, it gives a glimpse of the kind of resolvethat will ultimately start to address the skills crisis and unemploymentthat is facing our country.”

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Pictured: (L-R) Tre Hulley, Silungile Mqadi and Marcia Marais were thefirst Jirah Academy graduates to secure Instrumentation Mechanics

apprenticeships at the Engen Refinery, with the head of training Rob Gasken.

Engen takes a StandAgainst ArtisanShortages andUnemployment

Engen takes a StandAgainst ArtisanShortages and

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Local Impact

NEW SENEGAL OIL & GAS LEGISLATIONSnapshot and Hot Topics

y all accounts, Senegal is among Africa’s most stable countries.It has been so since its independence from France in 1960,with as little as three major political transitions (all of them

peaceful). It has a dynamic and diversified economy, and annualeconomic growth has been above 6% since 2015 – with projectionsputting it at around 7% in the coming years, just as in 2017 and 2018.The country’s democratic institutions are strong, and Senegalese civilsociety is not only politically engaged but also eco-conscious.

Senegal has been on the radar of oil & gas companies for more than60 years, but only recently has the full extent of its oil and gas reservesemerged. Further to the huge discoveries made in 2014-2016, gasproduction is on track to commence in 2021 and oil is expected to startto be produced in 2022. But the great expectations in the governmentand among the people that this could be an overnight bonanza are beingprudently managed – including by the President of the Republic, ageological engineer who knows and understands the industry, and whoworked many years for Petrosen (the Senegalese NOC, of which hewas CEO 2000-2001), and previously served as Minister of Energybetween 2001 and 2003.

A word of caution for the private stakeholders as well: the days ofattracting investment at any price, if they ever existed in Senegal, areover. The country is taking it slow and is in it for the long run, keento avoid the Dutch disease and to give transparencya better chance to take hold – while ensuring a moreequitable distribution of the benefits, safeguardingthe environment, and creating opportunities for thelocal population and businesses.

The cornerstone(s) of the legal backdrop of theseexciting times in Senegal are the recently-enactedPetroleum Code and the related industry-specificLocal Content Law. Whereas the former was longawaited and replaces its 1998 predecessor, the latteris a fresh statute instituting and imposing detailed,stringent and perhaps overly ambitious localcontent requirements, a critical topic nowadays onwhich the now-repealed 1998 Petroleum Code andthe petroleum contracts entered into thereunder werelargely silent.

Clearly, a closer look at the most relevant features of this importantlegislation is in order.

Petroleum CodeUnlike what we see happening in other jurisdictions, the Senegalese

NOC is not the exclusive concessionaire of petroleum mining rights,and these rights may be granted to national or foreign legal personspossessing the required technical and financial capabilities – in theform of a prospecting authorization or a mining title (i.e. an explorationauthorization, a provisional exploitation authorization or an exclusiveexploitation authorization). Exploitation authorizations may only begranted to legal persons organized under Senegalese law;

The State reserves the right to participate through the NOC in theoperations, by partnering up with the holders of a prospectingauthorization or of the petroleum contract (a risk service agreement,or more typically a PSC) pertaining to the relevant mining title. PSCsare negotiated by the Minister of Hydrocarbons, approved by Decreeand published in the Official Gazette;

The NOC is reserved a minimum carried interest of 10% during theexploration and development phases, and has an option to increase itup to 20% in the development and exploitation phases (without thisadditional interest being carried);

Petroleum blocks are awarded by competitivetendering procedure or direct consultation, in termsto be defined in implementing regulations;

The minimum work program pertaining to anexploration authorization (which is granted for aninitial period of up to 4 years, and may be renewed2 times for up to 3 years each time) is defined in thePSC, and these commitments must be covered by abank guarantee from an internationally reputed bank;

Any discovery of hydrocarbons is to be notifiedto the Minister of Hydrocarbons within 48 hours. Ifthe discovery indicates the existence of a commerciallyexploitable deposit, appraisal works shall be carriedout and the commercial nature of the discovery

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NEW SENEGAL OIL & GAS LEGISLATIONSnapshot and Hot Topics

A word of caution forthe private stakeholders

as well: the days ofattracting investment atany price, if they everexisted in Senegal, are

over. The country istaking it slow and is in

it for the long run…

By Hugo MoreiraMiranda & Associados


established – upon which, an exclusive exploitation authorization isapplied for (the application must include a development plan, thetemplate of which will be defined in a future statute). In turn, if thedeposit is not commercially exploitable immediately but could sobecome in the future, a retention period of up to 2 years for liquidhydrocarbons and up to 5 years for gaseous hydrocarbons may begranted;

The granting of an exclusive exploitation authorization (for amaximum initial period of 20 years, renewable once only for anadditional period of up to 10 years) entails the cancellation of theexploration authorization within the relevant discovery area, but thelatter remains in force until its expiry outside of said area;

Production is shared between the State and the contractor as providedin the PSC. The annual cost oil cap is 55% (onshore operations), 60%(shallow offshore), 65% (deep offshore), and 70% (ultra-deep offshore).The State’s minimum share of the profit oil is 40%, and it variesaccording to an “R” factor sliding scale;

The rates of the royalty on the net production of liquid hydrocarbonsare 10% (onshore), 9% (shallow offshore), 8% (deep offshore), and7% (ultra-deep offshore), and for gaseous hydrocarbons (regardless ofwhere they are exploited) it is 6%. This royalty is payable in kind orin cash at the State’s discretion;

Production shall be allocated on a priority basis to the satisfactionof the country’s domestic consumption requirements, with the transferprice reflecting the international market price. Upon these requirementsbeing satisfied, production may be freely exported subject to a customduty;

Corporate income and the assignment of interests are taxed underthe General Tax Code. An annual surface fee is also payable duringthe exploration phase;

During exploration, appraisal and development, certain materials,supplies, machinery and equipment, spare parts and consumables notproduced or manufactured in Senegal are exempt from customs dutiesand charges, except the Statistical Fee and the Community Contributions.Both the contract holders and their subcontractors benefit from thisexemption, and in the case of temporary importation for subsequentre-exportation, the above items are declared under a total suspensionof importation duties and charges;

Mining titles are assignable and transferable, in certain cases beingsubject to the prior approval of the Minister of Hydrocarbons. Thesame applies to certain transfers of shares in a member of the contractor– or in a company directly or indirectly controlling a member of thecontractor – if it results in a change of control. Any such change ofcontrol is to be notified to the Minister of Hydrocarbons;

The FX regulations in force in Senegal (in particular, those enactedby the UEMOA) apply to the operations carried out under the PetroleumCode, with both the contract holders and their subcontractors benefittingfrom (i) the right to take out abroad the loans required for their in-country activities, (ii) the free movement of the funds pertaining to the

payments made within the scope of their current operations, (iii) theright to transfer the amounts required to settle contractual debts inconnection with their operations in Senegal, and (iv) the right to transferthe proceeds (e.g. interest and dividends) of the capital invested, subjectto the prior approval of the Minister of Hydrocarbons and the Ministerof Finance. The amounts of the loans and the proceeds of the exportsales may not, however, be kept abroad and must be repatriated;

Whereas infringements of the applicable laws and regulations aresubject to the jurisdiction of the Senegalese courts, disputes arising outof a petroleum contract may be settled through consultations, goodoffices, mediation, conciliation, arbitration or any other mechanism,jurisdictional or otherwise, agreed upon between the parties;

Petroleum contracts may also include a stabilization clause, butchanges in law in terms of employment, personal safety, control of thepetroleum operations or environmental protection are excluded therefrom;

Pre-existing contracts remain valid and preserve their legal framework,with the rights relating to the renewal of the mining titles and thegranting of exploitation authorizations being grandfathered.

Local Content LawIt applies to any contractor, subcontractor, service provider and

supplier engaging in oil & gas-related activities;

This Law institutes the National Local Content Monitoring Committee(CNSCL), whose terms of organization and operation will be laterdefined in a specific statute. This is the entity to which local contentplans are to be submitted;

These plans must describe the company’s activities, detail the goods,services and competencies required for the carrying-out thereof, andaddress the promotion of Senegalese capital and companies, and ofemployment and training, the promotion and use of local goods andservices, the transfer of technology and know-how, and the promotionof research and development;

Among others, the local content plans are to specify the measurestaken to allow national employees to acquire the qualifications andexpertise required to progressively replace the foreign staff, and describethe progress made in terms of the use of the local workforce, as wellas the job-creation and capacity-building initiatives carried out;

On condition that they have the required competencies, Senegalesecitizens shall be afforded priority in hiring, with non-qualified jobsbeing primarily offered to the residents of the local communities;

The goods and services relating to oil & gas activities shall besupplied and provided by Senegalese companies, although foreignsuppliers and service providers may be retained when no Senegalesecompanies are capable of supplying and providing them undercomparable conditions;

Competitive tendering procedures must be launched for theprocurement of goods and services, and the CNSCL’s prior approval

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must be obtained for any goods and services to be procured other thanthrough a competitive tendering procedure. These procedures are tobe launched through an electronic platform, whose organization andoperation shall be later defined in a specific statute;

Also to be governed in a specific statute is the classification of theoil & gas activities as following under the exclusive, mixed, and non-exclusive regimes: the first relates to the activities in respect of whichthe State reserves the right to grant exclusive authorizations (presumablyto Senegalese companies); the second to those requiring an associationbetween a foreign company and a local company; and the third groupsthe activities with a low local content potential;

Insurance and reinsurance policies and financial services must betaken out with and procured from insurance companies and financialinstitutions licensed and established in Senegal, to the extent of theircapabilities;

The Local Content Law also instituted the Local Content DevelopmentSupport Fund, which is tasked with implementing the local contentstrategy. Just as the CNSCL’s terms of organization and operation, theterms of financing and operation of this Fund will also be later definedin a specific statute;

Failure to comply with the local content obligations may trigger thetermination of the petroleum contract, fines, the non-recovery of thecosts (for contractors), and the exclusion from the procurement platformand the prohibition to enter into oil & gas-related contracts (forsubcontractors, service providers and suppliers);

This industry-specific Local Content Law is immediately applicable,but as far as existing contracts are concerned, only to the extent it doesnot compromise the stabilization provisions thereof. A maximum 12-month grace period for compliance may be afforded by the CNSCL incertain cases.

Senegal overcame the first challenge to become a serious player in theAfrican oil & gas industry: it discovered game-changing resources, isprudently managing expectations, and enacted a fresh legal frameworkwith which it believes a fair balance will be struck between theattractiveness and competitiveness of its oil & gas sector in the eyesof foreign investors, and the protection and advancement of theSenegalese people’s interests in terms of economic and socialdevelopment. But in the path to joining the regional league of oiland gas producers, there is still a lot of ground to cover – and itinvolves building an industry almost from scratch, including in terms

of the Government’s capacity to handle the growing volume ofregulatory work.

One of the key principles expressly provided for in the new industry-specific Local Content Law is realism – and this might well be a wordto keep in mind, irrespective of where we are, how we look to theSenegalese oil & gas sector, and what hopes we have to participate inand contribute to its development and consolidation.

There are reasons for concern, in particular owing to the quite significantnumber of (new) policies, standards and requirements whose detailedregulation was left for subsequent statutes – from the procedures forthe award of blocks to the organization and operation of the CNSCL,from the electronic platform for the procurement of goods and servicesto the classification of the oil & gas activities into the exclusive, mixedand non-exclusive regimes, from the participation of Senegaleseinvestors in the share capital of the subcontractors to the template ofthe development plans.

But there are also reasons for optimism. The steps taken thus far seemto have been all in the right direction – the slow approach to thedevelopment and monetization of the assets, the creation in late 2017of the National Oil and Gas Institute (an industry-sponsored academyfor training, capacity-building and certification in the different fieldsof the industry, directed to both public officers and private technicians),the focus on transparency and on environmental protection, thecommitment to devote a significant portion of the expected revenuesto longer-term investment, and of course the revamping and updatingof the applicable legal framework.

Senegal has a lot to learn from more mature oil-producing countries:bad (but also good) examples are everywhere – in the African continentand beyond. The country has been patiently and thoroughly case-studying and benchmarking these examples, and until now it seems tohave done all the right things to follow the good examples and to avoidthe bad. If it continues doing so, it is unquestionable that Senegal hasall it takes to succeed in creating a thriving and inclusive oil and gasindustry and to become itself an example to study and follow in yearsto come.

About the AuthorHugo Moreira is a Managing Associate at Miranda & Associados,and has 15+ years of experience in oil & gas matters in lusophoneand francophone Africa, including Senegal (he is assistant coordinatorof the Jurisdiction Group). Hugo may be contacted [email protected].


outh Africa was one of the continent’s first colonized nationsto ‘officially’ receive its independence from the yoke ofcolonialism. Unfortunately, this did not mean native South

Africans were totally free and the transition to a truly free nation tookdecades to achieve. To say the country experienced racial strife fromthe outset of independence would be putting it mildly.

Europeans began migrating in the mid-1600s. Racial conflict betweenthe white minority and the black majority led to apartheid beinginstituted in 1948 by the National Party and an enactment of apartheidlaws made racial discrimination the main institution in the country.This gave birth to some of Africa’s most known activists of the 20th

century like Bishop Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela. It was thesemen, and many others, who led a bitter struggle to end apartheid. Theapartheid laws began to be repealed or abolished in 1990, bringingabout the inauguration of Nelson Mandela as South Africa’s first blackpresident in 1994. Today the country’s politics are dominated by theAfrican National Congress (ANC). Mandela was followed by fellowANC party member Thabo Mbeki as president. Mbeki was one of theexecutive faces of the South African government from 1994 with histwo terms as president lasting from 1999 to 2008.

Mbeki was followed by his former vice president Jacob Zuma whosucceeded him in the presidential office, despite charges of corruptionagainst him and his administration, as well as his personal life makingthe news on a regular basis. In August 2017 the South African president

narrowly survived his sixth vote of no confidence from the country’sparliament, although his luck eventually ran out. In February 2018Zuma finally resigned after defying orders from the ANC to leaveoffice on the eve of another no-confidence vote in parliament. CyrilRamaphosa was elected by parliament as the next president and remainsin office today.

Ramaphosa’s road so far has not been an easy one as he inherited astruggling economy, a divided party, and endemic corruption. The May2019 general elections gave the ANC and Ramaphosa additional timeto tackle corruption and boost South Africa’s economy. As long as thepublic does not become disillusioned as they were with his predecessor,Ramaphosa does have the opportunity to make a difference. The highunemployment rate is at the top of the agenda along with reformingthe ANC as voters have become increasingly disenchanted with thestatus quo, as voter turn-out has shown in recent elections.

President Ramaphosa has put in place a number of stimulus measuresincluding an extension of the employee tax incentive through 2029, anallocation of R600 million to support rural entrepreneurs, and anotherR600 million allocated to the clothing and textile sectors.

He also has cited changes made to visa regulations for tourists andhighly skilled professionals, and the creation of industrial parks asevidence of his government’s efforts to secure economic growth anddeal with unemployment.

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Politics & Economy

South AfricaSouth Africa

President:Matamela Cyril Ramphosa(since February 2018)Independence:May 1910 (UK)Population: 57.73 million(2018)Real GDP Growth Rate:-0.7% (Sept. 2018 est.)Per Capita GDP: $13,661 (2018 est.)Debt – external: $176 billion (Q1 2019 est.)Industrial Production Growth Rate:0.5% (2017 est.)Minister of Mineral Energy Resources:Gwede Mantashe (since February 2018)

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One of the newest, and most pressing challenges facing the nation isxenophobia. Over August and into September, xenophobic attacks onforeign nationals in the country has risen to very concerning levels.By mid-September at least a dozen people had been killed and hundredsmore forced to flee their homes. Many of the foreign nationals (and

immigrants) being targeted are from Mozambique and Nigeria. Theseevents have led to strained relations with South Africa, but leadershipis working to keep tensions to a minimum. The attacks are mainlyattributed to the high unemployment rate with workers feeling thatforeigners are taking hard to come by jobs that they seek.

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It has been an exciting year for South Africa’s petroleum sector. InJanuary, French major Total spud the offshore Brulpadda-1AX re-entry well on Block 11B/12B. This block is located in the OuteniquaBasin approximately 175 km off the southern coast of South Africa.Total’s first attempt to drill the Brulpadda Prospect in 2014 wassuspended prior to reaching target due to difficulties experienced bythe drilling rig in the harsh deepwater environment. A few years later,Total contracted the Odfjell Deepsea Stavanger semi-submersible rigto drill the Brulpadda-1AX re-entry well in December 2018.

The well was drilled in 1,432 meters of water to a total depth of 3,420meters subsea. The Brulpadda-1AX well encountered 57 meters of netgas condensate pay in Lower Cretaceous reservoirs. Following thesuccess of the main objective, the well was deepened to a final depthof 3,633 meters and was also successful in the Brulpadda-deep prospect.

Total and its partners plan to acquire 3D seismic this year, followedby a multi-well exploration program on this license beginning with theLuiperd Prospect in Q1-2020. A contract for the program was securedin July with Odfjell Drilling for the continued use of the DeepseaStavanger semisubmersible rig for this program.

Total holds a 45%-operated stake in the license along with partnersQatar Petroleum with 25%, Canadian Natural Resources has 20% andAfrica Energy Corp., through subsidiary Mainstreet 1549 ProprietaryLtd., holds the remaining 10%.

South Africa’s upstream oil and gas sector is overseen by the state-owned company, PetroSA (Petroleum Oil and Gas Corp. of SouthAfrica). The state-run firm oversees all upstream oil and gas assets inthe country and holds stakes in upstream assets around the continent.

PetroSA itself holds several domestic assets including Blocks 9 and11a of the south coast. The company also holds participating stakes inmany blocks with the various operators in the country

New Age Energy (operator) and Tower Resources areactive in SouthAfrica and hold a license just adjacent to Total’s Block 11B/12B. TheAlgoa-Gamtos license contains the southern deepwater basin marginof the Outeniqua Basin that was targeted by Total’s Brulpadda welland is approximately 150 kms along strike to the east from the Brulpaddadiscovery. Importantly, the Brulpadda well has successfully tested theLower Cretaceous turbidite fan play of the Outeniqua basin slope,which is interpreted to extend along strike into the southern part of theAlgoa-Gamtoos block, in which the operator, New Age, has identifiedon 2D seismic as a substantial prospect. New Age assessed the analogueprospect potential on the Algoa-Gamtoos block at 364 million boe onan unrisked basis from 2D reprocessed data, which is an increase onits previous 2018 estimate.

This past May, Azinamreceived approval fromthe South Africang o v e r n m e n t a n dc o m p l e t e d t h etransaction to acquirean operating interest inBlock 3B/4B in theOrange Basin. Theoperat ing interestwas acquired fromRicocure. Under thetransaction, Azinambecame operator with a 40% participating interest, with Riocure retaininga 60% participating interest. This breakdown was short lived as in July,Africa Oil Corp. would acquire a 20% interest from Ricocure.

The 3B/4B block is located in the Deep Western Mid-Orange Basin,extending from about 120 to 250 kms offshore. The block covers anarea of 17,581 sq km and lies in water depths ranging from 300 to2,500 meters. Historical drilling on the shelf and modern 3D seismicsurveys of the Orange Basin indicate the potential for both regionallysignificant shallow-water oil and gas projects and world-class deepwaterdiscoveries.

Block 3B/4B contains play types and prospects similar to those beingtargeted by majors in adjacent blocks. During the Initial License Periodof three years the partners will carry out a regional subsurface reviewof existing seismic, geological and engineering data and may reprocessparts of the existing 3D data in order to high-grade the explorationprospects on the block.

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In May, Shell applied to take a stake in a license owned by OK Energy,located in South Africa’s west coast deep offshore. The company alsolooked to gain a 40% interest in deep-water blocks 5, 6 and 7 in theAtlantic off Cape Town from Anadarko Petroleum Corp. prior to theUS-independent’s acquisition by Occidental Petroleum taking place.

Norway’s Equinor, formerly Statoil, also holds a substantial positionin South Africa’s offshore acreage. In 2017 the company acquired a90% interest and operatorship for the Exploration Right East Algoa.The license covers an area of approximately 9,300 sq km. It also holdsequity stakes in Exploration Right 12/3/154 Tugela South, Transkei-Algoa and the Deepwater Durban exploration licenses, operated by USsupermajor ExxonMobil.

South Africa has plenty of acreage under license, with the previousdiscussion only a sampling of operations in the country. Activity hasbeen slow over the past few years, but with Total’s Brulpadda discovery,activity may pick up now that it has been confirmed great potentiallies in its offshore.

UnconventionalsNon-conventional resources such as coal-bed-methane (CBM) andshale oil and gas extraction hold plenty of potential to help fill SouthAfrica’s energy gap. However, when the government put a moratorium

on shale exploration in response to some environmentalist concernsover negative impacts that fraccing could have on the delicateenvironment in the Karoo Basin, activity came to a grinding halt. Thediscussion has gone back and forth, but the end result has been a lackof enthusiasm by investors until the country makes a final andbinding decision as to which direction it will take with itsunconventional resources. Royal Dutch Shell, Falcon Oil and Gas andBundu Gas & Oil, Kinetiko are among five companies who at one timewere keen to pursue opportunities.

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hen discoveries were made back in 2010 in the deepoffshore of Mozambique’s coast by Anadarko, the country’seconomic prospects for the future became brighter. This

major discovery was followed by ENI’s announcement in October2011 of another massive natural gas deposit. Fast forward to the closeof 2019, and the natural gas bounty has amassed to volumes whichwill bring in significant revenue to the State, and hopefully trickledown to its people.

Since the initial discoveries, the make up of the parties on each license– Area 1 and Area 4 – has transformed quite a bit to where now bothare heavily controlled by oil majors and large independents. BothArea 1 and Area 4 reached key milestones this year with these oilmajors now set to carry out development to production.

Area 1After a long time in waiting, in June, US independent AnadarkoPetroleum (now Occidental) announced that it had formally sanctionedits Mozambican liquefied natural gas project, Mozambique LNG(MLNG). The project is to be the country’s first onshore LNGfacility. The natural gas discoveries made on the Golfinho/Atum field,in Offshore Area 1, will provide the feedstock. MLNG will initiallyconsist of two LNG trains with a total nameplate capacity of12.88 million tons per annum (mmtpa). The project, estimated to costover $20 billion, will be the largest sanctioned petroleum investmentin sub-Saharan history.

According to MLNG, so far, approximately 75 Tcf of recoverablenatural gas has been discovered in the Offshore Area 1– the equivalentof a 12-billion-barrel oil field. The results to date of the drillstem testing(DST) program in the Prosperidade and Golfinho/Atum complexesdemonstrate the outstanding flow characteristics of the reservoirs. Eachflow test successfully flowed at facility-constrained rates of 90 to 100million cubic feet per day (Mmcf/d), which supports well designs of100 to 200 Mmcf/d.

Since signing off on the project, Anadarko was acquired by OccidentalPetroleum who subsequently signed a binding agreement to sellAnadarko’s Mozambican assets, along with those held inAlgeria, Ghana, and South Africa to French supermajor Total S.A. for$8.8 billion. The sale was contingent upon Occidental entering intoand completing its proposal to acquire Anadarko which was realizedin August.

On September 30, Total announced the closing of the acquisition ofAnadarko’s 26.5%-operated interest in the Mozambique LNG projectfor a purchase price of $ 3.9 billion. Commenting on the closing, PatrickPouyanné, Chairman & CEO of Total said “Mozambique LNG is aone of a kind asset that perfectly fits with our strategy and expands ourposition in liquefied natural gas.”

The project got underway on August 5 when President Filipe Nyusilaid the foundation stone in Palma, marking the official start ofconstruction. President Nyusi stated at the ceremony, “With this project,Mozambique will change, Palma will change…” The project is expectedto come into production by 2024.

Area 4Mozambique’s other prolific LNG development, Offshore Area 4, isoperated by Mozambique Rovuma Venture S.p.A., a joint venturebetween ENI, ExxonMobil, and CNPC, holds a 70 percent interest inthe Area 4 exploration and production concession contract. Galp,KOGAS and Empresa Nacional de Hidrocarbonetos E.P. each hold a10 percent interest.

Area 4 holds an estimated 85 Tcf of gas in place. ExxonMobil willlead the construction and operation of all future natural gas liquefactionand related facilities, while ENI will continue to lead the Coral FloatingLNG (FLNG) project and all upstream operations. ExxonMobil andpartners are looking toward an optimal full field development via these

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multiple LNG trains and Coral South FLNG for the development andcommercialization of 21.7 Tcf of high-quality gas.

The Coral South FLNG project was launched by ENI in 2017. TheCoral South project is the first development launched to monetize theconsiderable gas resources discovered on Area 4. In July of this year,the installation works on the hull of the Coral Sul FLNG vesselgot underway. The hull is expected to be launched in 2020, in linewith the planned production startup of the Coral South Project in 2022.The Coral Sul FLNG facility will have a gas liquefaction capacityof 3.4 million tons per year when completed and will be thefirst FLNG vessel ever to be deployed in the deep watersoffshore Africa.

Drilling and completion activities for the six subsea wells that willfeed the FLNG vessel were slated to begin in September. The wellswill have an average depth of approximately 3,000 meters and will bedrilled in about 2,000 meters of water depth. The activities, carried outby the Saipem 12000 drilling rig, are expected to be complete by theend of 2020.

This past May, the Mozambique Rovuma Venture said that thegovernment of Mozambique had approved its development plan forthe Rovuma LNG project, which will produce, liquefy and marketnatural gas from three reservoirs of the Mamba complex located in theArea 4 block in the Rovuma Basin, two of which straddle the boundarywith neighboring Area 1.

“The development plan approval marks another significant step towarda final investment decision later this year,” said Liam Mallon, presidentof ExxonMobil Upstream Oil & Gas Company. “We will continue towork with the government to maximize the long-term benefits thisproject will bring to the people of Mozambique.”

“This is the third development plan approved in this five-year periodto enable the sustainable development of the huge natural gas reservesdiscovered in the Rovuma Basin and represents the Government’scommitment to ensure the implementation of projects that will drivethe development of Mozambique,” said Ernesto Elias Max Tonela,Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy.

“We want Mozambican entrepreneurs and Mozambicans to be the mainbeneficiaries of the various business opportunities made available bythe multinationals, because we believe that these companiesshould grow with the national businesses and with Mozambique,”Tonela added.

LNG OfftakeAhead of final investment decisions on both projects, there has beenno shortage of offtake agreements signed for the yet to be producedLNG. During 2019 alone, several agreements were signed.

Area 1 SalesShortly into 2019 a bevy of LNG offtakes deals were signed. In February,Tokyo Gas and Centrica agreed to jointly purchase 2.6 Mmtpa, deliveredex-ship from Mozambique LNG from the start-up of production untilthe early 2040s. Meanwhile, Shell International Trading Middle EastLtd. signed a SPA for 2 Mmtpa for a term of 13 years. Tohuku andAnadarko firmed up their 2017 Heads of Agreement with Tohokupledging to buy a maximum of 0.28 Mmtpa for 15 years. Further,Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd committed to 1 Mmtpa for 15 years whileEDF’s off-take agreement calls for the supply of 1.2 Mmtpa, alsofor 15 years.

The February deals were followed up in May when Anadarko signedan agreement to sell LNG to Jera and CPC Corporation. The salesand purchase agreement called for the delivery of 1.6 Mmtpa ofLNG over a base term of 17 years. Earlier in the year, additionalsales were made ahead of FID. A sales and Purchase Agreement(SPA) was also signed with CNOOC’s gas and power Singapore Tradingand Marketing unit. This SPA is for 1.5 Mmtpa over a period of13 years.

Area 4 SalesThe marketing effort for the LNG produced from the Rovuma LNGproject is jointly led by ExxonMobil and ENI. Mozambique’s Area 4co-venture participants announced in January that they had securedLNG offtake commitments from affiliated buyer entities of the partners.This, they said, was a key milestone, enabling the participants to rapidlymove toward an FID in 2019 on the first phase of the Rovuma LNGproject.

In May, ExxonMobil said that sales and purchase agreements for100 percent of the LNG capacity for trains 1 and 2 had beensubmitted to the government of Mozambique for approval,which together will produce more than 15 million tons ofLNG per year. No specific information on the buyers or volumeswas provided.

Other DevelopmentsContract signings for the awards made in the 5th competitive LicensingRound in 2014 were finally signed after many delays during Q3 andQ4 2018.

ENI was awarded operatorship of Block A5-A, adjacent toblock A5-B, with a 59.5% stake. Block A5-A is located in thedeepwater Northern Zambezi Basin, 1,500 km northeast of the capital

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Maputo. The block spans 5,133 sq km in water depths ranging from300-1,800. Other partners are Sasol (25.5%) and ENH (15%).

An ExxonMobil-led consortium won the rights to explore and developoffshore blocks A5-B, Z5-C and Z5-D, located in the deep waters ofAngoche and Zambezi Basins.Block A5-B is located about 1,300kilometers northeast of Maputo, ina completely unexplored area offthe city of Angoche. It has an areaof 6,080 sq km, at a water depthof between 1,800 and 2,500 meters.Blocks Z5-C and Z5-D cover atotal area of 10,205 sq kms, at awater depth between 500 and 2,100meters, in a scarcely explored areafacing the delta of the ZambeziRiver, about 800 kms to the north-east of Maputo.

Sasol was awarded two newlicenses for gas exploration inMozambique. The South Africanfirm has been given the greenlightto explore on acreage coveringmore than 3,000 sq km in southernMozambique. The company hasalso been awarded a block offshorethe country in the Angoche Basincovering an area of about 5,100 sqkm. Sasol holds 70% interest inthe first block and 25.5% in thesecond. Delonex Energy and Statoil(now Equinor) were also awardedacreage in the 5th round, butsubsequently withdrew because ofthe long delays.

This past August, Rosneft and theInstituto Nacional de Petróleo(INP) signed a CooperationAgreement granting Rosneft theright to study available geologicaldata on a number of onshore andoffshore blocks in Mozambique inorder to examine their potentialand the opportunity to enter theprojects on those blocks inthe future.

O n t h e r e g u l a t o r y e n d ,Mozambique’s governmentapproved the creation of a new oiland mining authority in April – theInspectorate-General of MineralResources and Energy. The newauthority was created to guarantee

“the permanent and efficient monitoring of activities in compliancewith the law,” according to the cabinet’s spokesperson Ana Comoana.The Inspectorate-General of Mineral Resources and Energy is to haveadministrative and technical autonomy and focus on five issues: mininginspection, hydrocarbon and fuel, energy, internal audit and rescue.


POWER & ALTERNATIVES

ENGIE Acquires Mobisol, BecomesMarket Leader African Off-Grid SolarENGIE has expanded its decentralized energyoffering in Africa through the acquisition ofMobisol, a pioneer of off-grid solar solutions.Mobisol has operations in Tanzania, Rwanda,and Kenya and has installed more than 150,000solar home systems, providing clean and reliableenergy to over 750,000 people in sub-SaharanAfrica. Founded in 2011, the company employsover 500 people as well as approximately 1,200contractors.

With the acquisition of Mobisol, ENGIE will beoffering solar home systems in three additionalcountries, complementing the six countries whereit is already present with its solar home systemcompany Fenix International. Mobisol’s focuson productive use products, combined withFenix’s inclusive home solar power systems, willenable ENGIE to offer an unparalleled range ofaffordable energy products as well as extendingits customer base from rural to urban areas. Theclosing of the acquisition of Mobisol will happenonce all approvals of the relevant regulatorybodies are received.

ENGIE already has significant activities in off-grid electrification in Africa. With its subsidiaryFenix International, it provides access to energyand financial services via its solar home systemsto over 500,000 customers, improving the qualityof life for over 2.5 million people in Uganda,Zambia, Nigeria, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire andMozambique. Additionally, with ENGIEPowerCorner, it supplies affordable electricity torural populations through smart mini-gridspowered by solar energy and battery storage.PowerCorner offers 24/7 energy services tohouseholds, local businesses and public servicesin villages across Tanzania and Zambia. All ofthese services are enabled by digital financialsolutions such as mobile money and Pay As YouGo technologies.

ContourGlobal Targets RE in TogoContourGlobal wants to boost power generationin Togo through the use of renewable energyaccording to the company’s director general,

Mawuèna Adjogah. “As far as we are concerned,we have the means and the expertise. What weare missing is only the conjunction of the will ofall partners,” said Adjogah.

ContourGlobal built and operates the Lomécombined-cycle gas plant with a capacity of100 MW, nearly half of the national electricitycapacity of 230 MW and is looking to add moreto its portfolio.

Togo, which adopted in 2018 its law onrenewable energies aims to produce 50% of itselectricity, from these types of power plants, by2030. To achieve this, it intends to establish 300mini solar power plants, in the framework ofpublic-private partnerships and to provide550,000 households with solar domesticinstallations by 2030. ContourGlobal isready to aid the government in meetingits targets.

G5 Sahel Heads of Stateto Support Desert-to-Power InitiativeG5 Sahel heads of state at a Summit inOuagadougou, Burkina Faso, gave strong supportto Desert-to-Power, an Africa Development Bank-led initiative. The summit, “Harnessing solarenergy for the socio-economic development ofthe G5 Sahel countries” came on the heels of ahigh-level technical meeting attended by theregion’s energy ministers, and developmentpartners including the World Bank, and regionalinstitutions such as the West African Economicand Monetary Union and ECOWAS. FormerBritish Prime Minister Tony Blair, ExecutiveChairman of the Tony Blair Institute for GlobalChange, also participated in the high-level meetingand endorsed the initiative.

The goal of Desert-to-Power is to propel theSahelian economies to higher growth andprosperity. Adesina outlined the initiative’sambitions of providing 10,000 MW ofsolar-generated electricity to 250 millionpeople across the Sahel. The Desert-to-Powerinitiative covers 11 countries: Burkina Faso,Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger,Nigeria, Sudan, Djibouti, Senegal and Chadand is in line with the United Nations SustainableDevelopment Goals, the Paris ClimateAgreement and the Renewable Energy Initiativefor Africa.

Donor and development partners were asked tohelp mobilize $140 million for the initiative’sproject preparation phase. Five priority areas forthe G5 Sahel include expanded utility-scale solargeneration capacity; extending and strengtheningpower transmission networks; accelerating

electrification through decentralized energysolutions; revitalizing national power utilities;and improving business climates for increasedprivate sector investments.

Fenix International toLaunch Off-Grid Solar in MozambiqueFenix International, a next-generation energycompany and subsidiary of ENGIE, opened itssixth market in Mozambique, where it expects toreach 200,000 households with clean energy andinclusive financial services within three years.

Launching sales in Mozambique is the latest stepin Fenix’s expansion. Headquartered in Kampala,the company has already connected 500,000customers to solar power in Uganda, Zambia,Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, and Nigeria. Fenix hasrapidly grown operations as a subsidiary ofENGIE, enabling the company to scale off-gridenergy and financial services across new markets,with Mozambique the fourth new market openedwithin the past year.

By replacing fossil fuel-powered lanterns, solarhome systems allow off-grid customers toilluminate their homes with clean LED lights, aswell as charge phones and run radios, TVs, hairclippers and speakers. Fenix’s latest product,Fenix Power, is a GSM-enabled power systemthat enables the company to determine productusage and potential technical issues remotely,improving the customer experience. Fenix is thefirst PAYGO solar company in Mozambique touse these Internet of Things (IoT) technologiesto reduce costs and bring high-quality, affordabletechnology to rural, last-mile customers.

Fenix has partnered with Vodacom and VodafoneM-Pesa SA to tackle the challenges of distribution,connectivity and mobile payments that have leftrural Mozambicans underserved by affordableenergy products in the past.

Google to Become World’sLargest Renewable Energy PurchaserGoogle recently signed agreements for theconstruction of solar and wind power plants, witha total capacity of 1,600 MW. These plants will

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be located in the US, Chile and Europe.The powergenerated by the new plants will enable Googleto increase its portfolio of renewable power plantsto 5,500 MW, an increase of more than 40%.These new contracts also allow the organizationto become the largest private purchaser ofrenewable electricity in the world.

“Once all these projects are completed, our carbon-free portfolio will produce as much electricity asa city like Washington DC or countries likeUruguay or Lithuania,” said CEO Sundar Pichaiin a statement, adding “Since 2017, we are thefirst company of our size to fully offset its annualelectricity consumption with renewable energy.”

PEG Africa Raises $5 Millionfrom ElectriFI for West Africa ExpansionPEG Africa, a West Africa-based pay-as-you-go(PAYG) solar company, has raised $5 millionfrom ElectriFI to continue rapid growth inexisting markets.

PEG Africa is a leader in deploying andfinancing solar to households and SMEs in West

Africa. Via its PAYG financing model, itenables customers to replace their perpetualspending on poor-quality polluting fuels such askerosene and diesel with solar energy. PEG iscurrently serving 400,000 daily users in Ghana,Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal, and has recentlyexpanded into solar water irrigation and biggersolar power systems.

The funding from ElectriFI is subordinated juniordebt and will be used for growth in PEG’s existingmarkets. ElectriFI, the Electrification Financing

Initiative, is funded by the European Union andmanaged by the EDFI Management Company,established by 15 European DevelopmentFinance Institutions.

Windlab and EurusEnergy to go Hybrid in KenyaKenya has signed a MoU with energy developersWindlab and Eurus Energy to set up the firstlarge-scale hybrid wind and solar power plant onthe continent. The plant, which will have acapacity of 80 MW, will be located in the localityof Meru. It will operate with 20 wind turbinesand 40,000 solar panels.

The project, estimated at $150 million, willgenerate enough electricity to power 200,000households.

It will be developed as part of a partnershipbetween Meru County Investment andDevelopment Corporation (MCIDC) and WindlabEast Africa, a local subsidiary set up by thedevelopers. Construction is scheduled to beginin 2021.

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MARKET MOVERS

Dual Listing for VAALCOVAALCO Energy plans to seek a standard listingon the Main Market of the LSE. The listing willcomplement its existing listing on the NYSE,according to the company. The dual-listing willbroaden the shareholder base and allow it toaccess future capital to support its growth strategy.

VAALCO expects the listing to occur bySeptember 30 and shares will trade under theticker symbol EGY, the same as on the NYSE.VAALCO’s expected market capitalization onadmission to the LSE will be around $100 million.VAALCO states it is in an enviable position fora company of its size in terms of its debt-freebalance sheet and strong cash position. This allowsit to self-fund an active work program that hasrecently commenced.

WeatherfordBankruptcy Moving ForwardWeatherford International saw the US BankruptcyCourt for the Southern District of Texas issue anorder confirming the company’s Second AmendedJoint Prepackaged Plan of Reorganization ofWeatherford International and its Affiliate Debtorsunder Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code.The company expects that the effective date ofthe Plan will occur before year-end.

The following is a summary of the material termsof the Plan. This summary highlights only certainsubstantive provisions of the Plan and is notintended to be a complete description of the Plan.

The Plan of Reorganization’s treatment of claimsincludes; claims under the company’s securedterm loan facility and 364-day revolving creditfacility were paid in full in cash from borrowingsunder a debtor-in-possession credit agreement(the ‘DIP Facility’) and claims under the unsecuredrevolving credit facility shall be paid in full incash on the effective date.

In addition holders of Weatherford’s existingsenior unsecured notes shall receive their pro ratashare of: (i) 99.0% of the newly issued commonstock of the post-emergence company, subject todilution on account of the equity issued pursuantto a management incentive plan and the NewCommon Stock issuable in respect of the Warrants(as defined below); and (ii) $500 million principalamount of new unsecured notes with a maturityof five years.

Miranda Wins InternationalLaw Firm of the YearMiranda & Associados won the “InternationalLaw Firm or the Year” award in the 2019 African

Legal Awards, organized by the prestigious LegalWeek publication.

On the award, Diogo Xavier da Cunha, ManagingPartner, stated: “We are deeply honored by thisaward, which motivates us to continue to walkthe path of excellence and innovation that wehave been following since our early years. Thepride and responsibility with which we receivethis award are all the greater when we wereshortlisted alongside top-tier law firms.

“A very special word of gratitude to all our clients,some of which have been honoring us with theirpreference and trust for more than three decades.A huge thanks to our lawyers and staff for theirrelentless commitment and dedication. Ourstrength and ability to overcome the dailychallenges we face are very much due to them.We must also pay tribute to all colleagues at theMiranda Alliance member firms, whose allegianceto our international project is another of thefoundations which sustain and consolidate ourreputation in the ever-more competitive and globallegal services market.”

JFO Enhancing ME FootprintJames Fisher Offshore (JFO) plans to deliversignificant efficiencies across multiple regional

TPI Assesses O&GFirms’ Carbon PerformanceThe Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) recentlyreleased its latest assessment of companies inthe energy sector, with its Management Qualityand Carbon Performance of Energy CompaniesReport. The report is comprised of companiesinvolved in coal mining, electricity, and oil andgas production. This years’ assessment covers135 companies, compared to 105 last year, andfor the first time TPI has included acomprehensive assessment of the CarbonPerformance of oil and gas producers.

TPI is a global initiative led by asset ownersand supported by asset managers. The initiativeis aimed at investors and free to use, it assessescompanies’ preparedness for the transition to alow-carbon economy, supporting efforts toaddress climate change. Launched January 2017,TPI has over 50 investors globally who havepledged their support. These investors representroughly $15 trillion in combined assets undermanagement and advice. TPI is used in a varietyof ways by these investors including to informtheir investment research, in engagement withcompanies, and in tracking managers’ holdings.

The 135 companies covered by the assessmentare graded by levels, with Level 0 beingcompanies who are unaware of or notacknowledging climate change as a businessissue. The highest level is Level 4 which isreserved for companies who set long-termquantitative targets for reducing GreenhouseGas (GHG) emissions. Surprisingly enough,only 1 of the 52 oil and gas companies assessedby TPI was at Level 0 and there were 12 atLevel 4.

The majority of oil and gas companies assessedfell in the Level 2 and Level 3 range, 18 and 14respectively. Level 2 companies are buildingcapacity and have set GHG reduction targets,while Level 3 firms are integrating GHGreductions into their operational decision making.Generally Level 3 has nominated a boardmember/committee with explicit responsibilityfor oversight of the climate change policy.

Of the companies assessed, geographically, EUcompanies held the most Level 4 spots withENI, Equinor, OMV, Repsol, Royal Dutch Shell,and Total all securing spots based on theircontinuing carbon management efforts. US

independents ConocoPhillips and OccidentalPetroleum garnered a Level 4 as did Australia’sWoodside, Japan’s JXTG, and Canada’s SuncorEnergy.

According to TPI, the average ManagementQuality score of oil and gas producers has risenfrom 2.4 in 2018 to 2.7 this year. It went on tosay that this progress was echoed in trend datafor the 46 companies that TPI also assessed in2017/18. While 27 companies have stayed onthe same level (including six companies thathad already reached Level 4 in 2018), 14companies have moved up at least one level.On the other hand, five companies have moveddown at least one level. Six companies havemoved up from Level 2 to Level 3 by settingemissions reduction targets for the first time.Four companies have moved up from Level 3to 4 and the main factors in this improvementhave been apportioning board responsibility andsupporting domestic and international climatemitigation the TPI report said.

One company, Occidental Petroleum, leapedover Level 3, moving from last years’ Level 2to a Level 4 ranking in 2019.



projects by enhancing its Middle Eastern footprint,establishing bases in Saudi Arabia and Dubai.JFO’s commitment to the region follows a seriesof project wins for its pioneering ultra-high-pressure abrasive cutting solution, that will beresourced and managed in country.

Ross Anderson, regional manager – Middle Eastcomments; “Our JFO hub in al-Khobar in theSaudi Kingdom not only allows us to engage withproject supply chains and relevant stakeholders,but from this base we can deploy equipmentlocally, including our hydraulic winches, subseademolition tools and advanced abrasive cuttingsystem. We are also providing in region expertiseand full project support. Similarly, from our Dubaioffice we are providing engineering support,account management, equipment and personnelmobilization.”

The Middle East is a key market for JFO wherethe business is creating measurable efficienciesfor some of the region’s most notabledecommissioning projects. There are an estimated1,000 assets and over 3,000 wells set to exceedtheir operational life expectancy over the next20 years.

MacGregor CompletesTTS’ Marine and Offshore BuyCargotec’s MacGregor business unit completedthe acquisition of the marine and offshorebusinesses of TTS Group ASA. Cargotecannounced in February 2018 an agreement toacquire the businesses for an enterprise value ofapproximately €87 million.

Completion of the acquisition follows receipt ofrequired approvals from the relevant countriesand authorities. The acquired businesses will beintegrated within MacGregor’s operating structure,and their results will be consolidated intoMacGregor’s financial figures.

Based on preliminary estimates, approximately30% of TTS sales are related to TTS companieswhere the group’s ownership is 50%. Cargotecplans to consolidate these companies using theequity method, whereby 50% of the companies’net profit will be presented as a separate row inCargotec’s financial statements before EBIT. Thismeans that sales income from these companieswill not be consolidated into Cargotec’s sales.

SOCO Upbeaton Results, Increases Bottom LineSOCO International has announced its InterimResults for the six months ended 30 June 2019.The company ended the period with a total groupworking interest production of 12,541 boepd fromEgypt (91 days) and Vietnam (181 days), a

significant increase from H1 2018 results of 7,748boepd. The company also implemented initiativesfor Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions reductionin Egypt.

Ed Story, president and CEO, commented: “Weare pleased with the strategic progress SOCO hasmade in the first half of the year. We completedthe acquisition of Merlon, and successfullyintegrated the business. The acquisitionsignificantly increases group reserves, resourcesand production, and importantly gives SOCO thediversified base to grow production further. TheEgyptian assets complement our Vietnameseportfolio and allow us to invest cash flowinto activities focused on increasing reservesand production.

Story continued: “We look forward to a busysecond half of the year as we implement ourincreased drilling program in Egypt and continueto focus on meeting production guidance inVietnam. To further SOCO’s ongoing commitmentto operating a sustainable business, a new ESGBoard Committee, to be chaired by John Martin,has been established to ensure that SOCO isstriving for the highest standards across allEnvironment, Social and Governance matters.”

Armed Robbery at National OilWells Drilling & Workover Company HQNational Oil Wells Drilling & WorkoverCompany, a subsidiary of National Oil Corp.(NOC), confirmed that an armed robbery tookplace at its company headquarters in Tripoli onSeptember 6, 2019.

Two masked men discharged their weapons,assaulted security guards, and detained theminside the company headquarters until thefollowing morning. Personal possessions werestolen of those detained as well as a number ofother devices belonging to the company.

Commenting on this crime, NOC chairmanMustafa Sanalla said: “NOC resolutely condemnsthis unlawful act. National Oil Wells Drilling &Workover Company is reviewing securityprotocols and working with relevant authoritiesto in order to corroborate the identity of theperpetrators and bring them to justice.”

African PetroleumCompletes PetroNor DealThe deal between African Petroleum and PetroNorE&P announced in March is now complete. AfricanPetroleum confirmed that it has acquired 100%of the shares in PetroNor, against considerationin the form of 816,198,842 new shares in theAfrican Petroleum have been irrevocably instructedto be issued to NOR Energy and Petromal.

The company’s new issued and outstanding sharecapital will, upon issuance of the ConsiderationShares, be 971,665,288, consisting of 971,665,288shares of no par value. The Consideration Sharesto be received by Petromal are subject to a six-months lock-up. Nor Energy also undertook asix-months lock-up to the benefit of the company,but has later been released from its undertaking,due to a separate agreement with AfricanPetroleum whereby NOR Energy has agreed toprovide a liquidity facility to the company.

African Petroleum is in the process of changingits registered name to PetroNor E&P

Delta Mobrey/Emerson Deal CompleteDelta Mobrey reported that five months aftersigning an agreement with Emerson to exclusivelydistribute and then purchase the Mobrey line ofmeasurement products, the full acquisition hasnow been successfully completed.

The previous months have seen Delta Controlsexpand their product range with the range ofMobrey products, begin trading with a new nameof Delta Mobrey Ltd and grow the businessglobally with a number of key senior appointmentsbeing made.

Angolan Governmentto Sell Stakes in 195 CompaniesThe share capital held wholly or partially by theAngolan state in 195 different companies will besold between 2019 and 2022, under thePrivatization Program, published in the Diárioda República official bulletin, quoted by Jornalde Angola.

The program states that 175 companies will besold via public tender, 11 by public auction andnine through Initial Public Offering (IPO), withthe government expected to launch publictenders this year for 80 companies as well asone IPO.

In 2020, 81 companies are due to be sold throughpublic tender, six through auction and three viaIPO, and in 2021 and 2022 the remainder will besold. The most well-known companies involvedin this process are state oil company Sonangol,diamond company Endiama and airline TAAG,the BCI, BAI, BCGA and Banco Económicobanks, as well as financial companies ENSASeguros and the Angola Debt and SecuritiesExchange (Bodiva).

Other companies listed for privatization includeSonangol’s airline, Sonair, airport managementcompany Sociedade de Gestão de Aeroportos andSonangalp, a fuel distribution company that is51% owned by Sonangol.


AROUND THE WORLD

ALE Awarded GoM JobALE announced that it was awarded a major steelcatenary riser (SCR) and umbilical pull-in contractby Subsea 7 USA for a development in the Gulfof Mexico. The scope of work included in thiscontract is for engineering, procurement,fabrication and offshore pull-in operations.

ALE will start the engineering phase of thisproject immediately with offshore operations tofollow in Q1 2020.

The contracted offshore SCR and umbilical pull-in operations will be performed at MississippiCanyon (MC), on an existing production facilitylocated south of New Orleans, LA inapproximately 1,900 meters of water. ALE willutilize its global expertise in heavylifting toprovide Subsea 7 and their client with a uniqueand lightweight equipment solution to pulldynamic loads topping 335t.

FID Taken on Artic LNG 2 ProjectTotal, Novatek and the other project shareholdershave approved the final investment decision (FID)for Arctic LNG 2, a major liquefied natural gas(LNG) development located on the Gydanpeninsula, Russia. The project will have aproduction capacity of 19.8 million tons per year(Mt/y) and is expected to export its first LNGcargo by 2023, the second and third train to startup by 2024 and 2026.

Total has a direct 10% interest in Arctic LNG 2alongside Novatek (60%), CNOOC (10%), CNPC(10%) and a Mitsui-Jogmec consortium, JapanArctic LNG (10%). Total also owns an 11.6%indirect participation in the project through its19.4% stake in Novatek, thus an aggregatedeconomic interest of 21.6% in the project.

The project has very low upstream costs with thedevelopment of the giant resources from theUtrenneye onshore gas and condensate field. Theinstallation of three concrete gravity-basedstructures in the Gulf of Ob on each of whichwill be located a 6.6 Mt/y liquefaction train thatwill contribute to significant capex reduction(more than 30% per ton of LNG) compared toYamal LNG. Also, the close proximity to YamalLNG will allow Arctic LNG 2 to leveragesynergies with existing infrastructure andlogistics facilities.

Arctic LNG 2 production will be delivered tointernational markets by a fleet of ice-class LNGcarriers that will be able to use the Northern SeaRoute and the transshipment terminal inKamchatka for cargoes destined for Asia and thetransshipment terminal close to Murmansk forcargoes destined for Europe

RDS Wins PharisEnergy conceptual study contractRDS, KCA Deutag’s global provider ofengineering and design, won a new contract tocarry out a conceptual study for Pharis Energy.Pharis Energy aims to initiate the first majoroffshore steam flood project in the world and iscurrently exploring innovative ways tomaximize oil recovery in the Pilot Field in theUK North Sea.

RDS’s scope of work on this project will includejack-up screening and selection and the WellHead Platform design. This work will be executedout of RDS’s London and Aberdeen offices.

Commenting on the contract award, Albert Allan,RDS Senior Vice President, said “This is anexciting study for RDS and we are lookingforward to working with Pharis Energy on thisproject which pushes the boundaries of oilrecovery in the UK North Sea. Through our agile,fit for purpose and scalable engineeringteams we are able to deliver maximum value forour client.”

Siccar Point Energy Awards CamboFEED Contract to Sembcorp MarineSiccar Point Energy E&P Ltd awarded anexclusive FEED contract to Sembcorp MarineRigs & Floaters Pte Ltd (Sembcorp Marine) forthe design of a Sevan cylindrical FPSO for itsCambo field development on the UKContinental Shelf.

The Cambo field is located 125 km northwest ofthe Shetland Islands and in a water depth of 1,100meters. The field was discovered in 2002 and thefinal appraisal well was drilled in 2018.

Sevan SSP AS is a wholly owned subsidiary ofSembcorp Marine, having been acquired in 2018.Sembcorp Marine has contracted KBR fortopsides design and integration support with workbeing carried out in Singapore and Norway. TheCambo partners had been working with two FEEDcontracting options since early this year and havenow selected Sembcorp Marine to complete theFEED work for the Sevan cylindrical FPSO.

In addition to the FPSO contract, other FEEDwork is being undertaken by BHGE for wells,subsea and riser systems, and by Genesis for agas export pipeline.

A draft Field Development Plan has beensubmitted to the Oil & Gas Authority. Formalproject sanction will be sought followingcompletion of the FEED activities. Shell acquireda 30% working interest stake in the field fromSiccar Point in 2018.

Chevron to BoostProduction at St. Malo in GoMChevron Corporation announced the sanction ofa waterflood project in the St. Malo field. Thisapplication of enabling technology is expectedto increase recovery and advance Chevron’sstrategy of maximizing the company’s existingresources in the Gulf of Mexico.

“The St. Malo field is a world-class asset that ispositioned for highly economic brownfielddevelopment,” said Steve Green, President ofChevron North America Exploration andProduction. “With our leading technology,experienced workforce and broad portfolio, we'redelivering value in the Gulf of Mexico.”

The waterflood project is Chevron’s first in thedeepwater Wilcox trend and is expected tocontribute an estimated ultimate recovery of morethan 175 million barrels of oil equivalent. It willinclude two new production wells, three newinjector wells and topsides injectionequipment to the Jack/St. Malo floatingproduction unit, allowing us to extend the life ofthe field.

Located approximately 280 miles south of NewOrleans, La., the St. Malo field has an estimatedremaining production life of 30 years.

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TechnipFMC Awarded PowerNapShell awarded TechnipFMC the integrated EPCIcontract for the PowerNap project in the GoM.PowerNap is a subsea tie-back project to theOlympus production hub and is located inMississippi Canyon, Block MC943.

TechnipFMC will design, manufacture and installsubsea hardware, including subsea tree systems,subsea distribution controls, topside controls,flying leads and connectors for three wells, inaddition to the supply of 20 miles of productionumbilical and flowlines. The project is expectedto complete installation in late 2021 and produceup to 35,000 bpd of oil equivalent at peak rates.

Arnaud Pieton, President Subsea at TechnipFMC,commented, “We are very pleased to have beenawarded this iEPCITM contract for the ShellPowerNap project. We look forward to executingthe scope of work and to further expanding our25-year successful relationship with Shell andour deep water portfolio in the Gulf of Mexico.”

Woodside Sees FirstOil from Greater EnfieldWoodside produced first oil from the GreaterEnfield Project through its Ngujima-Yin FPSOon August 25. Western Australia’s Greater EnfieldProject was approved in 2016 to develop theLaverda Canyon, Norton over Laverda andCimatti oil accumulations through a subsea tie-back to the Ngujima-Yin FPSO, located over theVincent field. Total investment for the projectwas approximately $1.9 billion.

The project scope included a major refit of theNgujima-Yin FPSO which was successfullycompleted at the Keppel Tuas Shipyard inSingapore. The FPSO returned to waters off theNorth West Cape in May 2019 and productionfrom the Vincent wells recommenced on July 4.Installation of subsea infrastructure has beencompleted, with all the project’s 12 developmentwells now also complete.Woodside CEO PeterColeman said first oil from Greater Enfield wasproduced on schedule and under the project’sbudgeted cost.

Joe Prospect Well Spud Offshore GuyanaPartners on Guyana’s Orinduik Block spud theirsecond exploration well on August 25. The well,being drilled by the Stena Forth drillship wasspud on the Joe prospect. Joe is the second of atwo-well drill program in Guyana for 2019. Thewell is expected to reach its final depth by theend of September.

The Joe prospect is a Tertiary feature on thenorthern part of the Orinduik Block in

approximately 700 meters of water and isestimated to hold 148.3 mmboe of gross unriskedprospective oil resources (P50).

Partners on the Orinduik Block are Tullow Oilas operator, Total E&P Guyana, and Eco AtlanticOil & Gas.

Allseas Awarded Decom ContractRepsol Norge awarded Allseas an EPRD contractfor the removal, transfer, load-in to shore anddisposal of its Gyda platform in the NorwegianNorth Sea. The contract covers both the 18,000ton topsides and 11,200 ton jacket, and includesan option for reinstallation on another field, whichwould be an unprecedented step for a fixedinstallation off Norway.

The contract also includes an option for theremoval, transfer, load-in and disposal of thejacket’s 32 conductors, weighing a total of3,100 tons.

Gyda is a field in the southern part of theNorwegian sector in the North Sea, between theUla and Ekofisk fields. The field was developedwith a combined drilling, accommodation andprocessing facility with a steel jacket standing in66 meters water depth.

The platform started producing in 1990, adecommissioning plan was submitted in 2016and Gyda is now producing in parallel withplugging of the Gyda wells. The platform is invery good technical condition, prompting operatorRepsol to consider re-use.

Allseas and Repsol spent more than a yearstudying ways to move the platform from itscurrent location and bring it to shore for disposal.The solution of transporting the jacket in a near-vertical positon (60 degrees) with PioneeringSpirit’s unique jacket lift system unlocked thepossibility for Repsol to award the full scope,both the topsides and jacket, to Allseas.

Removal is planned for between late 2020 and2023. Allseas has selected Kvaerner AS todismantle and recycle the platform at itsStord disposal facility on the west coastof Norway.

New Gas Discovery Offshore IndonesiaStrike Energy as part of the Strike-Warrego JVhas made a significant gas discovery in theKingia sandstone with the drilling of the WestErregulla-2 well. According to Strike, LoggingWhile Drilling (LWD) tools have been recoveredto surface and log interpretation has beenundertaken.

The Kingia formation was encountered at4,753 meters with gas on rock showing a grossgas column of at least 97 meters. The lowersection from 4,790 meters onwards is made upof several high-quality large units of clean sandwith thick blocky porosity development. This67-meter section, which has high gas saturationthroughout, is interpreted to have net pay of41 meters and an average porosity of 14.3% withpeaks of up to 19%.

The well has not encountered a gas water contactin the Kingia formation which, along with theexcellent reservoir quality, is consistent with theseismic amplitude model that supports theinterpreted field boundaries.

While drilling through the Kingia sandstonethe Bit Basher shale was encountered. Sincethen a bit change has occurred and the well is yetto encounter the High Cliff sands. Strike plansto continue drilling through to a nominal finaldepth of 5,200 meters at the top of theHolmwood Shale. This will be followed bywireline logging, side wall coring, casing andrunning of a production completion followedby a flow test.

Liza Destiny Arrives Offshore GuyanaThe Liza Destiny, Guyana’s first oil productionvessel, has arrived at the Stabroek Block, offshoreGuyana. The FPSO arrived following a 42-dayjourney from Singapore. After clearing customs,hookup and installation of the Liza Destiny FPSOwill begin operations.

This FPSO is a significant component of the LizaPhase 1 development, which involves fourundersea drill centers with 17 wells. The LizaPhase 1 development is on track for startup byQ1 2020 and will produce up to 120,000 grossbpd of oil.

Indonesia’s West Ganal Block AwardedENI and its partners Pertamina and Neptune wereawarded the West Ganal exploration block in theKutei Basin offshore Indonesia. The firms’ accessto the block was achieved through a bid in thesecond conventional oil and gas biddinground 2019.

AROUND THE WORLD

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The West Ganal is a new Gross Split PSC coveringan area of about 1,129 sq km adjoining the ENI-operated Muara Bakau and East Sepinggan PSCs,in the Makassar Strait offshore East Kalimantan.This additional award reinforces the strategiccooperation in the Kutei Basin with Pertaminaand Neptune, already partners in the producingJangkrik field in Muara Bakau block.

The block includes the Maha discovery with in-place gas resources estimated in excess of 600Bscf and further exploration potential, whosedevelopment and time-to-market will benefit fromthe proximity of the facilities of the Jangkrik fieldoperated by ENI.

Petro Matad Spuds Gazelle-1Petro Matad spud the Gazelle-1 exploration wellon Mongolia’s Block XX. The rig move fromHeron-1 and the rig-up at the Gazelle locationwere handled very efficiently by rig owner DQEand by Petro Matad’s in-field supervisors and sospud of the well is a little earlier thanpreviously forecast.

The well will be drilled to a total depth of about2,500 meters and is forecast to take approximately35 days to drill and log. The Gazelle Prospecthas an estimated Mean Prospective RecoverableResource of 13 Mmbo.

The well is located 4.5 km southwest of PetroChina’s T19-46-1 oil well and immediately updip of this discovery on the western flank of the

Tamsag Basin which is the primary source kitchenfor the oil fields in Block XIX.

In the event of a discovery at Gazelle-1, it isexpected that sufficient time will remain beforethe winter shut down of operations in lateNovember to allow well testing of Gazelle-1 tobe carried out this year.

Petrofac’s EPS DivisionWins ADNOC Maintenance JobPetrofac’s Engineering & Production Services(EPS) division garnered a contract to providemanaged maintenance services for ADNOC’s AlDhafra Petroleum to support its operations atHaliba field, located onshore along the south-eastborder of Abu Dhabi.

Al Dhafra Petroleum is a JV company betweenADNOC, Korea National Oil Corp. and GSEEnergy. The company recently achieved first oilproduction at Haliba field on June 1.

Mani Rajapathy, Managing Director, PetrofacEPS East, said “We are delighted to be supportingAl Dhafra Petroleum, as production from itsHaliba field is an integral part of ADNOC’sstrategy to unlock and maximize value from allof Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas resources to createlong-term and sustainable returns. This is ourfirst contract to specifically undertakemaintenance activities for a full asset in AbuDhabi, setting us up well to support other keyprojects in the UAE. Our team look forward to

playing their role in maintaining the facilities,adding value through the delivery of services ina safe and highly efficient manner.”

SW Vespucci in Southeast Asia ShootShearwater GeoServices was awarded a combined3D and 2D seismic survey in Southeast Asia forthe SW Vespucci multi-purpose vessel. Thecontract covers an area of 1,600 sq km for 3Dseismic with associated 2D work to be executedover a 1.5-month period from end Q3 2019 forthe undisclosed client.

The SW Vespucci is a highly flexible seismicvessel able to effectively conduct source, 2D, 3D,and ocean bottom nodal seismic acquisition,thereby maximizing vessel utilization andminimizing transit times.

“The MPV platform is ideally suited forclients with diverse project requirements,” saidIrene Waage Basili, the CEO of ShearwaterGeoServices. “It has allowed us to build aunique position in Southeast Asia and theaward to SW Vespucci is a further confirmationof the strong value we offer to clients inthe region.”

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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

2019

4150273102

220261070

1501001

1500000020

July

* Based on secondary sources

Sour

ce: O

PEC

Country

OPEC Oil Production

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

10161394318537120206

2194477926531056186698053085712

2974124962

August

(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

10161394

751203182026

650120206126

10560

0.520

18662.512048

7184

August

(including Lease Condensate, Thousand Barrels/Day)

Sour

ce: I

EA

Oil

Mar

ket R

epor

t

Country

AmericasCanadaChileMexicoUnited StatesAsia OceaniaAustraliaOthersEuropeNorwayUKOthersTotal OECDTotal Non OECD

24.345.440.011.9

16.950.490.420.073.371.731.170.47

28.2131.31

July

World Oil Production(million barrels per day)

2019

2019

2019

4550273102

250263070

1501001

1400000020

June

4440272102

222061070

1601001

1500000020

August

10271395325535121204

2218473626701078178096873074755

2960524869

July

10051418331528113208

2225471826901113185598133083734

2983025112

June

24.335.250.011.9

17.170.490.410.073.1

1.491.140.47

27.9131.39

June

24.295.3

0.011.91

17.060.480.410.073.171.61.1

0.4727.9431.05

May

10271395

751203252026

650121204125

10780

0.520

17802.512048

7137

July

10051418

751203312026

650113208123

11130

0.520

18552.512048

7298

June



706968676665646362616059585756555453525150

Sep 03Henry HubNew York







2.392.39

2.492.49

2.672.62

2.622.60

2.752.72

2.722.66

2.342.55

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

Sep 02OPEC BasketBrent CrudeNymex







$58.7658.5553.76

60.7561.2856.43

62.7464.6757.29

60.5160.7655.05

66.4368.4262.67

64.5764.2958.04

65.3065.2358.09

OPEC Basket Brent Crude NymexOil Prices

Gas PricesSpot Price Futures Price*

2.25

3.00

2.00

2.50

2.75

Sep

10

Sep

12

Sep

18

Sep

20

Sep

16

Sep

02

Sep

06

$

Sep

10

Sep

12

Sep

18

Sep

20

Sep

16

Sep

03

Sep

05

Sep

10

Sep

12

Sep

18

Sep

20

Sep

16

Sep

03

Sep

05

Sep

10

Sep

12

Sep

18

Sep

20

Sep

16

Sep

02

Sep

06

Sep

10

Sep

12

Sep

18

Sep

20

Sep

16

Sep

02

Sep

06

World Rig Count

Land OffshoreCountry

Total Land Offshore Total Land Offshore Total

Variance From

Last Month

August 2019 August 2018July 2019

16414297

363128900139

1,933

3051185392263

273

194193115416220926142

2,206

-7-74-8-6

-2921-32

201200111424226955121

2,238

1685387

351137

1,031219

2,046

19285

104402225

1,050220

2,278

Latin AmericaEuropeAfricaMiddle EastAsia PacificUnited StatesCanadaWorldwide Total

16814892

367132930118

1,955

3352195794253

283 Sour

ce: B

HG

E

2432175188191

232


CONFERENCES

AD INDEX

ADIPECAfrica Energy NetAfrica Oil & PowerAlternative Energy AfricaAMETradeAMI InternationalCTICCCWC GroupDreg Waters Petroleum & Logistics

IBC49

31, 39, 4135

925

IFC11, 33

BC

Frontier EnergyLayherMCI GroupNavingoPetroleum Africa Progressive TSLSPE InternationalSpire EventsWPC

4519431751

73721

5

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 2019

4-5 London, UK www.ami.internationalOil & Gas Non-Metallics 2019

1-3 Dakar, Senegal www.ametrade.orgCongo International Oil & Conference and Exhibition (CIEHC 2020)

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 Maputo, Mozambique www.mozambique-gas-summit.comMozambique Gas Summit

29-29 Central London, UK www.spe.orgSPE Upstream Finance and Investments Conference

10-11 Bahrain www.bbtc-mena.bizBBTC MENA 2019 – Bottom of the Barrel Technology Conference

10-12 Muscat, Oman www.mealf.net9th Middle East Artificial Lift Forum (MEALF 2019)

MARCH 202015-18 Oran, Algeria www.napec-dz.comNAPEC - North Africa Petroleum Exhibition & Conference

2-3 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania www.cwctog.comTanzania Oil & Gas 2019 (TOG 2019)

7-8 Abu Dhabi, UAE www.interventionmena.offsnetevents.comOffshore Well Intervention MENA 2019

8-8 London, UK www.diversityenergysummit.comDiversity in Energy Summit

29-31 Cape Town, South Africa www.ssapower.com5th Annual Southern Africa Power Summit 2019

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

2-4 Kinshasa, DRC www.drcoilandgas.comDRC Power, Oil and Gas Conference & Exhibition

2-3 Nouakchott, Mauritania www.cwcmauritania.comMauritania Future Energy

APRIL 202022-22 Bergen, Norway www.spe.orgSPE Norway One Day Seminar

DECEMBER 20206-10 Houston, TX www.wpc2020.comWorld Petroleum Congress

2-5 Yenagoa, Nigeria www.cwcpnc.com9th Annual Practical Nigerian Content (PNC) Forum

2-3 Dakar, Senegal www.res-west.comRegional Energy Summit: West Africa

JANUARY 2020

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Petroleum Africa September/October 2019 · 2019. 10. 4. · FAR Ltd appointed Timothy Woodall as an...

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