Africa: Others

AFRICA

Cyril Widdershoven, Consultant, Sittard, Netherlands (Libya, Tunisia, Uganda, Algeria, Sudan, Chad, Egypt, Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal sections); Geoff H.H. King, Managing Editor, energyeuroafrica.com (Libya, Tunisia and Uganda sections); Mark Pabst, Senior Editor, Oil and Gas North Africa magazine, Cairo (Algeria, Sudan and Chad sections); David Fuller, Senior Researcher, Oil and Gas North Africa magazine, Cairo (Egypt, Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal sections); and World Oil Staff

Others

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Cote d’Ivoire. After withdrawing from Block CI-109, Vanco purchased Xpronet’s 13.5% interest, increasing its stake in offshore Block CI-112 to 90%. State-firm PETROCI retains 10% of the deepwater tract. An initial well is expected before year-end 2003. Ranger installed an FPSO on Espoir field, projecting output at 16,500 bopd and 20 MMcfgd early next year. The firm hit a discovery on Block CI-40, where the well tested at over 6,700 bopd.

Ghana. Now that Saltpond Offshore Producing Co. has received an FPSO, the country is set to produce its first commercial oil in 15 years. An initial 2,000 bopd could be exported from just three wells. The original, 7-million-boe reserves may almost double, reported in-house sources. After discovering oil in the Western Tano Contract area, UK-based Dana Petroleum and Ghana National Petroleum have drilled WT-IX to a TD of 10,414 ft. Subsequent testing gauged 1,000 bopd.

Democratic Rep. of Congo. There has not been much activity in the energy sector since its previous bidding round in 1999, when French firm PERENCO acquired all five of TotalFinaPlf’s onshore fields. Last year, total output from these fields was 7,000 bopd.

Mozambique has substantial gas reserves and may become a regional producer in the near future. Yet, it is unable to attract foreign investors. Its previous licensing round failed to gain a single bid. Disappointing results led Sasol to suspend its gas exploration work in Sofala bay. The firm spent $17 million drilling two wells, with just one well revealing gas shows. Both were abandoned. The firm will decide this year whether to renew its licenses.

Table: Significant African discoveries, July 2000 to July 2001

Morocco. Interest is growing, thanks to implementation of the new hydrocarbon law that was approved in December 1999. During the year, Amina Benkhadra replaced Mohamed Douieb as head of state firm ONAREP.

Lone Star Energy, a subsidiary of Skidmore Energy, announced a discovery in its Talsint onshore concession during August 2000. Initial estimates placed field reserves at 1.5 billion to 2 billion boe, most of it gas. That figure was later revised downward, to 50 – 100 MMboe. The Sidi Belkacem 1 find alone may contain 10 MMboe. At the end of 2000, a horizontal extension to the discovery well was drilled. Drilling of a follow-up well, Sidi Belkacem 2, was to begin.

Meanwhile, Lone Star is drilling two wells offshore. The first wildcat, LBS 1 in the Loukos Sud Block, was spudded last November in 360 ft of water. It was targeted to a 12,460-ft TD, to test several formations. The company will also drill the LBS-2 to a 9,843-ft TD in less than 330 ft of water on the Casablanca Block.

ONAREP invited operators to bid for exploration rights in the country’s first offshore bidding round, which opened on October 30, 2000. The round covers the Rabat-Safi sector. Tracts on offer included: Blocks 1 (1,042 sq mi), 2 (1,486 sq mi) and 3 (1,062 sq mi) in shallow water; and Blocks 4 (1,930 sq mi), 5 (1,506 sq mi), 6 (1,888 sq mi), 7 (1,544 sq mi) and 8 (1,544 sq mi) in deep water.

Last November, three blocks were awarded. The first, Ras Tafelney, lies in 8,200 ft of water. It was awarded to Vanco Energy (operator, 60%) and Lasmo (now Eni, 40%). The second block, Safi Haute Mer, was awarded to Vanco (100%).

The final award last November was the 4,633-sq-mi Cap Draa Haute Mer Block. It includes six permits and was given to a consortium of Enterprise Oil (operator, 40%), Energy Africa (26.67%), and Kerr- McGee (33.33%).

There were five wells drilled (one offshore) for 36,560 ft (12,460 ft offshore), compared to no drilling at all in 1999. Another five wells are predicted for 2001, including one offshore. Crude output was up 20%, at 302 bpd, while natural gas production gained 12.5%, to 4.84 MMcfd.

Mauritania. Morocco’s unassuming southern neighbor is dominated by Australian E&P operators. Dana Petroleum began shooting an accelerated, 3,728-mi 2-D seismic program across its offshore Blocks 1, 7 and 8 last October. Dana signed a farm-in agreement with Woodside Petroleum, whereby the latter firm can acquire 35% of the PSC covering Block 7 by paying for exploration work on a "promoted basis."

Last January, DeGolyer and McNaughton reported that recoverable reserves in the Khede and Courbine deepwater prospects (Area B) could reach 180 to 216 MMboe. Woodside announced an oil discovery in the first well, Chinguetti 1, at Khede in Area B. It was drilled to a 8,596-ft TD during April and May, in a 2,592-ft water depth. Chinguetti 1 targeted Miocene sands and found a 295-ft gross oil column. The second well, Courbine 1, was drilled in June, but results were unknown at press time.

Benin. On Block 4, Kerr-McGee gained a 100% working interest in the 2.5-million acres that lie in water depths between 300 and 10,000 ft. The license covers Benin’s entire deepwater region.

Senegal. This West African nation is attempting to promote its offshore potential to attract international operators. Senegal was largely left out of the regional competition last year, with Nigeria, Angola and even Mauritania taking the lion’s share of foreign investment.

At the end of 2000, Veritas’ M/V Akademik Nemchinov began a 932-mi (1,500-km), 2-D survey of Vanco’s Dakar Offshore Profond license. The survey will create a grid over the St. Louis prospect in the northern sector of the block, as well as areas of interest in the southern sector of the block.

Petrosen, the Senegalese oil company, is urging foreign oil and gas companies to submit bids for a work program that leads to a production-sharing agreement offshore. Senegal is convinced that a world-class geological system containing oil at shallow depths exists in the Dome Flore block.

Namibia. Vanco Energy released the results of a 3-D seismic survey that covered 251 sq mi (650 sq km) of its offshore license area. Block 1711 in the Namibe basin stretches over 3,448 sq mi. Vanco has shared the results with Angola’s Sonangol.

Uganda. The new government, headed by President Yoweri K. Museveni, plans to push petroleum exploration forward. Still in its early stages, the biggest problem the government faces in implementing its plan is internal stability. Nevertheless, the country is eager to save the $120 million that it spends on oil imports annually, equal to 12% of GDP.

Heritage Oil and Gas was due to begin test drilling in western Uganda in first-half 2001, in five areas in the Semliki and Bundibugyo districts. China’s Zhongyun Petroleum Exploration Bureau (a subsidiary of Sinopec) has been signed by Heritage to supply drilling equipment and set up the initial site.

Tanzania’s joint venture consortium, Songas, expects to bring Songo Songo field’s 1-Tcf gas reserve onstream, as soon as the World Bank and European Investment Bank close a financial-endorsement deal. Tanzania is preparing a second licensing round subsequent to its first tender, which drew considerable interest from several majors. Tanganyika Oil’s test well on Mandawa Block, Mbate1, was plugged and abandoned. Petrobrás has applied for an offshore exploration license.

Guinea-Bissau. Petrobank is teaming with Premier to drill an exploration well on offshore Block 2, by mid-2002. Operator Premier will bear all project costs while holding a 55% working interest in the block. Petrobank retains 15%, with state company Petroguin holding the other 30%. Work has also begun on nearby Blocks 4A and 5A. The country held a licensing round in fourth-quarter 2000 to attract international bidders.

Togo. Hunt Oil signed a PSA for exploration rights in all of Togo’s deepwater area. The deal follows a failed licensing round of 15 blocks.

Madagascar. Because it is under-explored, Madagascar has revised its petroleum code, including improved exploration terms to attract foreign investors. Vanco Energy signed a contract for the deepwater Majunga Profound Block, in the Majunga basin. The 5,740- sq-mi block is in water depths of 3,280 to 9,840 ft. A 1,007-mi, 2-D seismic survey was scheduled for mid-2001.

Kenya. The government has made 17 blocks available. Dana Petroleum has won three production sharing contracts, offshore Kenya. As operator, Dana holds an 80% interest, and Kenya’s Star Petroleum holds the other 20% in Blocks L5, L7 and L10. These blocks constitute more than half of the country’s licensed offshore territory.

Ethiopia. The government is conducting a feasibility study to establish the quantity of oil and gas deposits in the Ogaden region in the Abbay basin. A Canadian firm, Gambella Petroleum, signed a four-year agreement to explore the Gambella region, involving 249 mi of seismic studies and drilling two wells.

Sierra Leone plans a bidding round this year, following a TGS-NOPEC seismic survey in 2000. The survey covered 1,491 mi (2,400 km) of the country’s coast in the Liberian basin.

Eritrea. A deal signed by the government grants CMS Oil and Gas an exploration concession, covering over 5,350 sq mi (13,860 sq km). The pact follows a drive by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development to promote exploration.

Guinea will hold its first licensing round by year-end, despite some setbacks. Seismic contractor, Western Geco, has selected and processed a 3,235-mi, 2-D seismic package that has 17 shallow-water tracts, three deepwater blocks and three ultra-deep blocks.