French oil and gas giant Total has signed multiple agreements with state-owned Angolan energy company Sonangol to strengthen their co-operation in the Central African country.
Image: Total headquarters in Paris, France. Photo: courtesy of Total.
The agreements cover both the upstream and downstream activities of Total in Angola.
Total has inked a risk service agreement for the deepwater Block 48 exploration license with Sonangol. The French firm is the operator of the offshore block.
Both Total and Sonangol are 50:50 partners in the exploration of Block 48, with plans to drill a well in the first, two-year phase of the program.
According to Sonangol, Block 48 is contained in the ultra deep water Lower Congo Basin, located south of Congo River. The water depth in the block is about 2,500m.
Total and Sonangol have also signed a framework agreement to create a joint venture in the future for the joint development of a network of service stations across Angola. Included in the plans are petroleum product logistics and supply.
Total chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanné said: “As today’s agreements and the launch of the Zinia 2 development demonstrate, Total, as Angola’s main oil and gas producer, continues to help develop the country’s oil and gas resources.
“The Group appreciates the joint efforts of the Angolan authorities, Sonangol and the industry to enhance taxation framework and regulations. These changes are vital to revive investment in this key sector of the Angolan economy and develop new projects, including those planned in Block 17.”
In Block 17, located 150km offshore Angola, Total and its partners arrived at a final investment decision to move ahead with the $1.2bn Zinia 2 development. The Zinia 2 project is anticipated to have a production capacity of 40,000 barrels per day.
While Total is the operator of Block 17 with a stake of 40%, Sonangol is the concessionaire of the deep water license.
Another offshore development in progress in Angola is Kaombo in Block 32 where the French energy company has a stake of 30%. The first phase of this development is slated to be placed into production in summer 2018.