The Africa-focused exploration company’s 20% stake in the deep offshore block in PEL56 in the Orange Basin, which contains the Venus light oil discovery, is estimated to be worth between $500m and $1bn
Impact Oil & Gas has a stake of 20% in Block 2913B. (Credit: Guilherme Reis from Pixabay)
Impact Oil & Gas is reportedly mulling the sale of its 20% stake in Block 2913B, offshore Namibia where a light oil with associated gas discovery was made in February 2022.
The privately-owned, Africa-focused, exploration firm, has roped in Jefferies in this connection, reported Reuters, citing four undisclosed industry sources. The investment bank will help Impact Oil & Gas in preparing a sale process for the stake in the deep offshore block.
According to the sources, Impact Oil & Gas’ stake in Block 2913B is estimated to be worth between $500m and $1bn.
The publication said that Impact Oil & Gas’ investors Africa Oil and Hosken Consolidated Investments declined to comment on the development.
However, a spokesperson of Impact Oil & Gas said that the company is presently looking forward to taking part in the Venus appraisal programme in Block 2913B, which is scheduled for later this year.
Venus is the name of the discovery made in the Orange Basin through the drilling of the Venus-1X discovery well by the block’s operator TotalEnergies EP Namibia.
TotalEnergies has a stake of 40% in Block 2913B, where the other partners are QatarEnergy (30%) and Namcor (10%).
Impact Oil & Gas holds the stake through its fully-owned subsidiary Impact Oil and Gas Namibia.
The Venus-1X well was drilled by the Maersk Voyager drillship to a total depth of 6,296m at which it intersected a light oil-bearing sandstone reservoir of Lower Cretaceous age, with a net oil pay of 84m.
Block 2913B is located in Petroleum Exploration Licence 56 (PEL56). Impact Oil & Gas forayed into the licence in 2014 as operator in 2014, acquiring 2D, and then 3D seismic data which helped in defining the Venus prospect.
In 2017, the company was joined by TotalEnergies, and in 2019 by QatarEnergy.