Click here to enlarge image“Natural gas flare reduction is a key business driver for the company,” says Jay Pryor, managing director of Chevron’s Nigeria/Mid-Africa Business Unit, “and the West African Gas Pipeline is one of several projects we have in Nigeria to eliminate the practice of routine associated gas flaring in our areas of operation. According to expert analysis, it is estimated that when fully operational, the pipeline could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 86 million tons over the next 20 years through flare reduction and changing to a cleaner-burning fuel.”When the offshore section is completed, it will be connected to a new onshore pipeline and compressor station in Nigeria, and the entire 678-km pipeline will link the Volta River Authority’s power plant at Takoradi, Ghana to Nigerian natural gas from an existing pipeline located near the city of Lagos.In addition to the delivery point at Takoradi, there will be other onshore delivery points, including regulating and metering/custody transfer stations at Tema in Ghana; Lome in Togo; and Cotonou in Benin. Construction of facilities for these additional delivery locations will commence in January 2006.AngolaAfter Nigeria, Angola is the second-largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa, with oil accounting for 40% of the country’s GDP. Over the next three years, oil production is forecast to double, reaching 2 MMb/d by 2008.Angola has announced plans for an offshore licensing round later this year. The round will include seven blocks - 1, 5, and 6, which are located on the shelf of the lower Congo and Kwanza basins; blocks 15, 17, and 18 (excluding development areas) in deepwater of the lower Congo basin, and block 26, a deepwater block in the Benguela sub-basin.Beginning 3Q 2005, Saipem has been awarded an offshore drilling contract for the charter of the drillshipSaipem 10000 by Total Exploration and Production Angola, operator of offshore Angola block 17. The Rosa field is located 200 km offshore Angola, at water depths of up to 1,700 m. The contract will last two years, and Total has the option to extend it for a further two years.Sonangol, Angolan state oil company, is the block 17 concessionaire. Total’s co-venturers in the block are Esso Exploration Angola (block 17) Ltd., BP Exploration (Angola) Ltd., Statoil Angola block 17 AS, and Norsk Hydro.The Kissanje and Dikanza fields in deepwater offshore Angola started production in July, largely ahead of schedule. The two fields, about 350 km from the capital Luanda, will reach a production of 250,000 b/d by the end of 2005.Kissanje and Dikanza fields are part of the Kizomba B project and are located in block 15 in water depths of approximately 1,000 m. Partners in the project include Eni (20%), ExxonMobil (operator, 40%), BP (26.67%) and Statoil (13.33%).Overall investment amounts to $3.5 billion, and total reserves amounting to 1 Bbbl of oil will be developed.A fixed platform and subsea wells linked to an FPSO will be employed to develop the project. Oil treatment and storage will be done in the FPSO.Kizomba B is the third project to be developed in block 15 after Xikomba start-up in 2003 and Kizomba A start-up in 2004. The three projects will allow overall production of approximately 550,000 b/d by the end of 2005.An eighth discovery was made in early August in block 31 off Angola, which is operated by BP and Sonangol. Licensees in block 31 are BP with 26.67%, ExxonMobil 25%, Sonangol 20%, Statoil 13.33%, Marathon Petroleum 10%, and Total 5%.The Astraea-1 wildcat drilled from theJack Ryan drillship to a total measured depth of 3,511 m in 1,496 m of water. The well was tested at a rate of 6,513 b/d.Astraea lies 10 km southeast of the Palas field, found earlier this year. Other discoveries in block 31 are Plutão, Saturno, Marte, Venus, Ceres and Juno.CongoThrough its local subsidiary, Elf-Congo, Total is the leading oil producer and foreign investor in Congo, producing approximately two-thirds of all Congolese oil output. Total (51% interest) operates N’Kossa, located on the Haute Mer permit. The company hopes to increase its output when the new Moho and Bilondo fields on the Haute Mer C permit come onstream.The Congolese authorities have given Total permission to begin developing the Moho-Bilondo project, located around 80 km offshore in water depths ranging from 600 to 900 m.Phase 1 of the Moho-Bilondo development comprises 12 subsea wells - seven producers and five water injectors - tied into a floating production unit. Expected to peak at 90,000 b/d, production will be exported to the Djéno terminal, which already handles nearly all of the country’s crude oil output. The development is scheduled to come on stream in 2008.Total E&P Congo’s (53.5%) partners in the Moho-Bilondo permit are Chevron Congo Overseas Ltd. (31.5%) and the Société Nationale des Pétroles du Congo (15%). The percentages indicated take into account the recent acquisition by Total E&P Congo of a 2.5% interest in the Haute Mer permit that had been previously held by Energy Africa (subsidiary of Tullow Oil).Agip (Italy), the second largest producer in Congo, produces approximately 25% of Congolese oil output. Agip operates the following fields (interest percent): Djambala (65%), Foukanda (100%), Kitina (55%), Loango (50%), Mwafi (100%), and Zatchi (65%).Twenty-two development wells are planned for the M’Boundi field, where a subsidiary of Maurel and Prom (France) discovered approximately 250 MMbbl barrels of new reserves in mid-2004. In March 2005, the subsidiary announced that the field’s Well 1001 tested at an initial flow rate of 4,000 boe/d, while the nearby Well 1303 encountered an unproductive reservoir. As a result of new finds, Maurel and Prom’s subsidiary hopes to increase production from 25,000 b/d in 2004 to 73,000 b/d by 2007.UK-based Burren Energy Plc completed and tested four development wells since the beginning of August, with a combined aggregate test rate of 14,800 b/d from the Vandji reservoir on the M’Boundi field. Three of the wells now account for M’Boundi production in excess of 52,000 b/d. The fourth well, MDB 1102, is undergoing pressure build-up and is expected to be placed on production imminently.Equatorial GuineaEquatorial Guinea’s total proven oil reserves are estimated at 1.28 Bbbl. Oil production is expanding rapidly, averaging 371,700 b/d in 2004, a large increase from the 1996 oil output of 17,000 b/d. Since the 1995 discovery of the Zafiro field, Equatorial Guinea’s oil production has increased more than tenfold, accounting for nearly 90 percent of the value of total exports in 2003. In October 2004, Equatorial Guinea told oil companies operating in the country to cap production at 350,000 b/d due to concerns that oil revenues from increasingly high prices could destabilize the economy.GE Petrol became Equatorial Guinea’s national oil company in 2001. Its primary focus has become managing the government’s interest stakes in various production sharing contracts with international oil companies, although it also participates in joint ventures and markets its share of crude oil production.Zafiro field, located northwest of Bioko Island, was discovered in 1995 by ExxonMobil and Ocean Energy (bought by Devon Energy in 2003) and contains the majority of the country’s oil reserves. In recent years, ExxonMobil has focused on increasing production from Zafiro by expanding drilling capacity. A new FPSO vessel introduced in 2003 also successfully increased production capability. Zafiro is Equatorial Guinea’s largest oil producer, with output rising from an initial level of 7,000 b/d in August 1996 to approximately 280,000 b/d in 2004.Ceiba, Equatorial Guinea’s second major producing oil field, is located just offshore of Rio Muni in exploration block G and is estimated to contain 300-800 MMbbl of oil. The field - discovered by Amerada Hess in 1999 - began production in December 2000. Both Amerada Hess (85% interest) and South Africa’s Energy Africa (15%) have experienced successful exploration of block G, resulting in discoveries in 2001 (Okume and Oveng fields) and 2002 (Akom, Elon and Abang fields). In July 2004, Amerada Hess received government approval for its plans to expand operations in block G. The expansion project requires an investment of approximately $1.1 billion by Amerada Hess, Tullow Oil and GE Petrol, with production expected to reach 60,000 b/d when it comes online in 2007. Additional production from Amerada Hess’ fields in Northern block G is also expected to come online in 2007.Alba, Equatorial Guinea’s third significant field, is located 12 miles north of Bioko Island. Walter International Inc. discovered it in 1991. Original estimates of reserves at Alba were around 68 MMboe, but recent exploration has increased new estimates to almost 1 Bboe. Unlike the Zafiro or Ceiba fields, E&P at Alba has focused on natural gas, including condensates. Recent production improvements at Alba resulted in average production of 50,000 b/d by the end of 2004.•Offshore West Africa Conference and Exhibition will be held March 21-23, 2006, in Abuja, Nigeria. Visit www.offshorewestafrica.com for more information.
