LNG

Saipem, the Italian energy engineering company working on oil, pipeline gas and LNG projects worldwide, said it was awarded new contracts worth $1 billion for crude and gas in Saudi Arabia and the development of underwater drones in Brazil as a new survey underpinned the long-term viability of oil in the energy mix to help finance cleaner alternatives and technologies.

National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (Namcor) in southwest Africa said a third discovery had been made by partners Shell and QatarEnergy in the deep-water offshore Orange Basin as hopes were also raised for future revenues from associated gas like northern neighbour and LNG exporter Angola.

State-owned Namcor said the light oil discovery was the third made in the Basin after drilling the Jonker-1X exploration well.

The well is located in Block 2913A and 2914B (PEL 0039), 270 kilometres (168 miles) offshore southern Namibia.

Shell and QatarEnergy each hold a 45 percent stake in the PEL 0039 concession while Namcor has a 10 percent shareholding.

The well was drilled in Block 2913A and 2914B, following drilling operations which commenced in December 2022 and were completed safely early in March 2023.

The Jonker-1X discovery is the third well drilled in the past year in the licence area held by Shell.

Namcor said that the “Deepsea Bollsta” semi-submersible rig owned by offshore firm Odfjell drilled the well to a total depth of 6,168 metres in a water depth of 2,210 metres.

The acquired data is being evaluated and further appraisal drilling is planned to determine the size and recoverable resources potential of the discovery.

Potential

“The discovery has proven the exciting potential of the deep-water Orange Basin,” said Namcor Managing Director Immanuel Mulunga.

Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Qatar Minister of Energy Affairs and the Chief Executive of QatarEnergy, said he was pleased with the encouraging discovery.

“I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate our partners Shell and Namcor, and to congratulate and thank the Government of the Republic of Namibia, which has been very supportive of this exploration effort,” said Al-Kaabi.

This announcement follows two similar announcements by QatarEnergy in February 2022 of oil discoveries in the Graff-1 well and in the Venus-1X prospect, both located in the Orange Basin.

In addition to the PEL-39 Exploration Licence, QatarEnergy also holds interests in PEL-56 (30 percent) and PEL-91 (28.33 percent) in offshore Namibia covering a total area of 28,327 square kilometres.

Pioneer Natural Resources, the biggest Texas oil producer and the largest acreage holder in the oil and gas-rich Permian Basin of the southwest US, reported fourth-quarter profits that were better than expected and said it would push ahead with drilling, completions, facilities and water infrastructure spending of up to $4.75 billion in 2023.

Major oil and gas exporters have weathered many upheavals but a renewed commitment to economic diversification and strategic priorities for LNG and natural gas will be vital to cope with the changing dynamics of shale and uncertainties over the pace of oil demand growth.