Prime Minister of Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom Andrew Byakutaga

Bunyoro Kingdom Premier Calls For Dialogue To End Oil Standoff

By George Busiinge The Prime Minister of Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom Andrew Byakutaga has called on government and the international oil companies to sit down together and discuss the ongoing impasse in the oil and gas sector. Recently, French oil major Total E&P, the lead joint venture partner of the proposed East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), announced that it had suspended all activities on the project citing uncertainty over its Uganda operation. Total suspended the crude oil pipeline activities following a disagreement between their JV partner Tullow Oil and government over a tax row stemming from Tullow’s intended sale of its Uganda operations stake to Total and CNOOC. Total E&P, which rooted for the Tanzanian route as choice for the pipeline, established the Total East Africa Midstream B.V as the interim developer for the crude oil export pipeline from Hoima in mid-western Uganda to Tanga Port at the Indian Ocean…
CSOs want oil revenues, including such taxes, to be invested in public infrastructure to support citizens

EACOP Suspension: Govt Advised To Ignore Tantrums By IOCs

Government has been advised not to give in to pressure from the international oil companies (IOCs) following the collapse of negotiations by Tullow Oil (U) to sell 21.57% of its Lake Albert oil stake to France's Total E&P and China's CNOOC. The advice comes from thirteen civil society organizations (CSOs) working to promote good governance in the oil and gas sector. The CSOs recently meeting at Africa Institute for Energy Governance (AFIEGO) agreed that the government should stand by its bargain. Tullow Oil and government after two and a half years disagreed on the assessment and payment of Capital Gains Tax (CGT) in addition to other taxes due to government from the planned farm down. Because of the failed farm down, Total E&P decided to suspend all activities on the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project. “Uganda’s laws including the Income Tax of 1997 provide that where a company…
Somalia's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Abdirashid Mohamed Ahmed

Somalia Keen To showcase Untapped Oil Potential

Following the signing of a new Petroleum Law and Revenue Sharing Agreement in May of this year, as well as the unveiling of its first ever offshore licensing round (15 blocks covering 75,000 sq. km), the Horn of Africa nation is keen to show the world that it is open for business. The law breathes new life into a dormant Somali oil and gas sector – several concessions were awarded to the majors in the late 1980s, but Civil War erupting in the country led to a force majeure declaration. Since the government collapse in 1993, insecurity and lack of infrastructure have largely rendered the region a no-go for western companies, leaving local warlords and militias to claw out territories. Almost 30 years later, Somalia is ready to shake-off past woes and attract global participation. This effort is being spearheaded by Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Abdirashid Mohamed Ahmed,…
Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima

Noble Energy Makes New Equatorial Guinea Petroleum Discovery

Noble Energy makes oil discovery in Block I, located in Equatorial Guinea's offshore sector; The well was drilled to a total depth of 4,417 meters and is expected to produce first oil in October 2019; As a champion of oil and gas development in Africa, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima will lead the conversation on the future of natural gas on the continent at the Africa Oil & Power event in Cape Town on October 9-11 2019.Equatorial Guinea's Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons (MMH) is pleased to announce that U.S. oil and gas company Noble Energy has made a discovery in offshore Block I.The Aseng 6P well was drilled to a total depth of 4,417 meters. Noble is currently in the process of completing the 400-meter horizontal section of the well and, using existing Aseng field infrastructure, is expected to produce oil from October 2019."We…
Tullow Confirms Farm Down Of Its Stake In Uganda Terminated

Tullow Confirms Farm Down Of Its Stake In Uganda Terminated

Efforts by Tullow Oil Plc to sell a stake of business in Uganda to Total E&P and CNOOC has flopped, the British oil firm confirmed Thursday morning. This follows the expiry of the Sale and Purchase Agreements (SPAs) it had procured with the government of Uganda and the JV partners. The SPA expired end of Thursday 29 August 2019. “Tullow has been unable to secure a further extension of the SPAs with its Joint Venture Partners, despite previous extensions to the SPAs having been agreed by all parties,” the oil firm said in a statement. “The termination of this transaction is a result of being unable to agree all aspects of the tax treatment of the transaction with the Government of Uganda which was a condition to completing the SPAs. “While Tullow’s capital gains tax position had been agreed as per the Group’s disclosure in its 2018 Full Year Results,…
GE completes gas turbine upgrade ahead of schedule at Tanzania's Songas Ubungo Power Plant

GE Completes Songas Ubungo Power Plant Turbine Upgrade

GE and Songas Tuesday announced they have successfully completed upgrades to the entire GE fleet of three LM6000PA and one LM6000PC gas turbines at the Songas Ubungo Power Plant in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. These technology upgrades will increase the power plant's efficiency and reliability, enabling Songas to maintain the plant in the most economical way possible."We are very pleased with GE's execution because it was completed safely and ahead of schedule, with great commitment and consistency across the four LM6000 units," said Nigel Whittaker, managing director, Songas Ltd. "The successful completion of this project not only improves Songas' performance levels, but through the additional reliable supply of electricity, continues to contribute to the economic development of the country, making a significant difference in the lives of Tanzanians." GE's upgrade of the four LM6000PA gas turbines to LM6000PC significantly improves the current LM6000 fleet. GE's SPRINT (SPRayINTercooling) technology, installed on…
Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons of Equatorial Guinea

Petroleum Ministers To Discuss Future Of Gas Devt In Africa

Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons H.E Gabriel Obiang Lima will speak at Africa Oil & Power 2019. A champion of the gas industry and African energy investment, Minister Obiang Lima this year led the Year of Energy initiative, in which Equatorial Guinea launched major domestic and pan-African natural gas projects.The Minister, alongside Antonio Oburu, General Director of Equatorial Guinea’s national oil company GEPetrol, will lead a delegation of African petroleum ministers at the fourth annual Africa Oil & Power (AOP) Conference and Exhibition in Cape Town, South Africa at the CTICC1 on October 9-11. The Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons and GEPetrol will be accompanied by a large delegation of companies active in Equatorial Guinea, including BANGE, Centurion Law Group, Noble Energy, Marathon Oil, Golden Swan, Baker Hughes, Kosmos Energy, Trident Energy, Tullow Oil, Elite Construcciones, Schlumberger, NAHSCO, Hexagon and NALCO Champion.Welcoming the delegation and speaking to Minister…
Zohr offshore gas field in Egypt

African Liquefied Natural Gas To Attract $103bn In 2019

Africa is an exciting frontier in the global natural gas sector. The continent holds 7.1 percent of proven global gas reserves and is expected to contribute nearly 10 percent of global production growth through to 2024.On the demand side, Africa's large, urbanized and industrialized societies of the future will require reliable and sustainable power generation. With greenfield investments in Nigeria, Egypt, Mozambique and elsewhere reaching nearly $103 billion this year, it is clear that liquefaction is viewed as the most profitable strategy for realizing Africa's gas potential.Record investments on the supply sideNigeria accounts for over 50 percent of current LNG production capacity on the continent. With October 2019 seeing a final investment decision on the $12 billion expansion of the country's liquefaction plant at Bonny Island in Rivers State.The Train 7 expansion project would increase Nigerian LNG production capacity by 35 percent, from 22 million tons per annum to 30…
The Akonikien LNG project in Equatorial Guinea

German Expertise Behind West Africa's First LNG Regasification Plant

German companies ESC Engineers and Noordtec worked closely with Equatoguinean contractor Elite Construcciones on the design, development and construction of the Akonikien LNG project in Equatorial Guinea. The 14,000 cubic metres storage and regasification plant was inaugurated this week by H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, and is the first such facility in West Africa.The project is part of Equatorial Guinea's LNG2AFRICA initiative that seeks to develop small-scale LNG projects to supply African gas to African countries and regions with limited infrastructure. The Akonikien plant will be receiving LNG and distribute it to various industries on the mainland, such as power and cement."German companies have once again demonstrated their ability to bring valuable technical expertise and technology to meet Africa's growing and complex energy needs," declared Sebastian Wagner, founder at the Germany-Africa Business Forum (GABF). "More importantly, this project was realized in cooperation with German SMEs,…
New CNPC Discovery Confirms South Sudan's Immense Oil Potential

New CNPC Discovery Confirms South Sudan's Immense Oil Potential

In what has become a remarkable month for exploration in Africa, a CNPC-led consortium has made a 300 million barrels of recoverable oil discovery in South Sudan's northeastern Upper Nile state. It is almost as much as the Oyo Discovery announced earlier this month in Congo.The exploration well was drilled at a total depth of 1,320m near the Adar oilfield in Block 3, operated by the Dar Petroleum Operating Company (DOPC), which includes CNPC, Petronas, Nilepet, Sinopec and Tri-Ocean Energy."This is a remarkable achievement for the country," declared Nj Ayuk, Executive Chairman at the Chamber and CEO of the Centurion Law Group. "Since independence, South Sudan has worked tirelessly to bring back damaged fields to production, and especially encourage exploration. Their efforts to maintain peace and stability and a safe environment for investors has paid off. We have always believed that stability goes hand in hand with economic prosperity. Such…
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