Africa

Nigeria unveils $48 billion upcoming oil & gas projects at IP conference in London

March 27, 2019 | Africa, Nigeria

London, UK | — The Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, yesterday said $48billion oil and gas investment opportunities have been identified in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. Speaking on ‘Insights on Future Exploration Hotspots: Opportunities for Africa’s Oil & Gas Industry, at the 2019 International Petroleum Week conference in London, Baru urged investors to invest in Nigeria through the identified investment opportunities. The projects are specifically in the areas of exploration and production, particularly the frontier oil basins, …

Africa unites to garner investment at Africa Oil Week in Cape Town

November 02, 2017 | Africa, Energy Trading & Markets, South Africa, Upstream

Cape Town, South Africa | – The African oil industry met this week to discuss the potential, but also the challenges, that the industry faces as the continent moves towards the commercialization of its huge gas and oil reserves. Six of Africa’s oil ministers from Cote d’Ivoire, Namibia, Nigeria, Ghana, Mali, South Africa attended, including US Secretary for Energy Rick Perry. The event drew speakers from the highest echelons of government, operators, service providers, legal, advisory and research firms. The key themes discussed were the …

China binging on African oil like never before after OPEC cuts

April 07, 2017 | Africa, Energy Trading & Markets, OPEC

London, UK | – China is set to import record amounts of crude oil from West Africa this month as OPEC’s supply cuts pave the way for other nations to gain a greater foothold in the fast-growing Asian market. West African producers led by Angola and Nigeria are poised to send crude to China at the rate of 1.48 MMbpd in April, the most since Bloomberg began compiling the data in August 2011, according to loading programs and traders. Overall Asian imports of West African …

Italy’s Enel Green Power signs PPA for 34MW PV project in Zambia

April 05, 2017 | Africa, Renewable Energy

London, UK | – Italian multinational renewable-energy corporation, Enel Green Power has signed a 25-year PPA with Zambia’s state-owned utility ZESCO for a 34MW PV project in the Lusaka South Multi-Facility Economic Zone in southern Zambia. Enel won the Ngonye project in June during the first round of the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) Scaling Solar Programme in Zambia, notorious for its record-low tariffs. This is Enel’s first foray into Zambia’s renewable energy market, with the company investing around US$40 million in the construction of the …

Niger’s Soraz refinery says struggling due to oil price fall

October 08, 2015 | Africa, Refining & Processing

Niamey, Niger | –  Soraz, the oil refinery in Niger owned by China National Petroleum Corporation’s (CNPC) , said on Tuesday it faced short-term difficulties due to a fall in global oil prices, but still aimed to sell its own products eventually. The refinery, a joint venture between CNPC and the government, has a capacity of 20,000 barrels per day and processes oil from the West African country’s Agadem field that started production in 2011. The company said in a statement it was struggling to …

Ex-French minister aims to launch $3 billion renewables fund for Africa

October 01, 2015 | Africa, Renewable Energy

Conakry, Guinea | – France’s former energy minister hopes to raise $3 billion from Western donors by next year to help cash-strapped African nations fund renewable energy projects, in a bid to tackle pollution and spur development. Jean Louis Borloo said his Energies for Africa project already had commitments from Western governments which would be used to ensure African nations had the capital to contribute their share of major renewables projects. Borloo did not give specific details but said he hoped to showcase the project …

British oil company investigated for corruption in Somalia over $690,000 in bribes

August 04, 2015 | Africa, Legal, Management

Nairobi, Kenya | – An oil company chaired by a former leader of Britain’s ruling Conservative party is being investigated for alleged corruption in Somalia, claims the company slammed as “defamatory”. Soma Oil and Gas, a private company chaired by Lord Michael Howard, on Monday denied paying more than half a billion dollars to government officials to protect an oil exploration deal signed in 2013. Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said on Friday it had opened a criminal investigation into Soma following allegations of corruption …

IMF cuts Africa’s GDP growth to 4.5% on oil plunge

April 14, 2015 | Africa, Economics & Markets

London, UK |  – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its economic growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa this year by 1.25 percentage points as plunging oil prices force exporters to curb spending plans. Gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to expand 4.5%, down from 5% in 2014, the Washington-based lender said in its World Economic Outlook. Further weakening of growth in China or Europe could reduce demand for African exports and curtail foreign investment in infrastructure and mining, it said. Nigeria and Angola, Africa’s biggest …