The state-owned oil and natural gas company in Namibia in southwest Africa has signed an agreement with Chevron Corp. granting the US major an 80 percent operating and working interest in a key offshore block.
The terms of the transaction are that Namibia National Petroleum Corp. (Namcor) and Custos Energy, a Namibian independent oil and gas exploration company focused on attracting investment and expertise to the Namibian offshore industry, will each retain a 10 percent carried interest in Petroleum Exploration Licence 82 located in the Walvis Basin to Chevron Namibia Exploration Limited's majority stake.
Namibia has four oil and gas exploration and production basins north to south, comprising the Namib Basin in the north, then the Walvis Basin in Central Nambia, followed by the Luderitz Basin just to the south of that and then the more prolific so far Orange Basin in the far south near South African waters.
Orange discovery
Galp Energia of Portugal said on April 22, 2024, that its Mopane discovery in the southern Orange Basin could contain 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent or more.
The Namcor-Custos-Chevron deal concerns the Walvis Basin in the middle of the oil and gas resource area and offshore Walvis Bay in Central Namibia.
Namcor said in a statement that this strategic collaboration underscored its dedication to maximizing the exploration potential and development of Namibia's offshore resources, particularly in under-explored basins holding significant promise.
The transaction is pending regulatory approvals from the Namibia Ministry of Mines and Energy.
“Together, we will leverage significant expertise and resources to propel our national interests and economic growth, turning possibilities into prosperity for Namibia,” said Namcor’s Interim Managing Director Ebson Uanguta in a statement.
Namcor added that it anticipated a substantial surge in oil and associated natural gas production estimates following the analysis of existing data.
Ample seismic
Analysts noted that around 70 percent of the total block area is covered by extensive existing seismic data comprising over 3,500 kilometres of 2D and 9,500 kilometres of 3D data.
Previous drilling activity on PEL 82 discovered the Murombe-1 and Wingat-1 wells.
Results confirmed regional extensions and the presence of the Barremian-Aptianoil-prone source rock, known as Kudu Shale.
“We are pleased to announce the continuing expansion of our in-country partnership with Chevron through their entry into PEL 82,” said Knowledge Katti, Chairman and Chief Executive of Custos.
“This is one of the most advanced and interesting opportunities offshore Namibia outside of the Orange Basin.” Katti explained.
“We are pleased to see our efforts over the last decade on PEL 82 result in this important step forward adding further to Namibia’s world-class offshore opportunity,” he stated.
