Exxon Mobil has announced that it has discovered hydrocarbons in Block 15 off Angola in the Bavuca South. This makes it the first commercial oil find by the company and its partners in the country since 2003 of which the last big fossil fuel discovery on the continent dates back to 2010.
Exxon Mobil’s exploits in Africa have been few and far between, and its last discovery in the continent is nearly two decades ago. This was the block’s 18th discovery, and also the first since 2003.
According to Exxon, the Valaris DS-9 drillship drilled the Bavuca South-1 well 365 km northwest from the Coast at Luanda in 1,100m (3,608 ft) of water, encountering 30m (98 ft) of good-quality, hydrocarbon-bearing sandstone. Exxon owns 36 per cent interest in the block, with BP Exploration Angola (24 per cent), Eni Angola Exploration (18 per cent), Equinor Angola Block 15 (12 per cent) and Sonangol P&P (10 per cent) being its partners.
Texas-based Anadarko Corp. (now a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum Corp.) and Italian energy giant Eni, discovered approximately 180 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, equivalent to 29 billion barrels of oil, in Mozambique’s supergiant offshore basin of Rovuma, immediately catapulting the South African nation to a potential global LNG superpower.
