Page 10 - AfrOil Week 50 2019
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PROJECTS & COMPANIES
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MOZAMBIQUE
BUZI Hydrocarbons, a subsidiary of Indone- sia’s Energi Mega Persada (EMP), is reportedly preparing to drill its first exploration well at the onshore Búzi block in Central Mozambique.
Carlos Zacarias, the president of Mozam- bique’s National Oil Institute (known as INP), told the Notícias daily that Buzi Hydrocarbons was just a few days away from spudding the well. He did not say exactly when drilling would begin, but he did state that the Indonesian company would be working with state-owned Empresa Nacional de Hidrocarbonetos (ENH) to execute the project.
Zacarias went on to say that Buzi Hydrocar- bons and ENH had already delivered the nec- essary equipment to the drilling site. If the first exploration well shows positive results, he said, the companies may drill a second well.
Equity in the project is divided between Buzi Hydrocarbons, with 75%, and ENH, with 25%. The block covers an area of around 10,000 square km and may contain as much as 223bn cubic feet (6.315bn cubic metres) of gas. It lies about 27km to the south of Beira and abuts the Save River. Buzi Hydrocarbons and ENH have said they anticipate spending about $50mn on exploration and development work there.
The partners signed an agreement on the Búzi project in 2008 and then gathered 610km of 2D seismic data from the licence area in 2012- 2013. They then drew up plans for launching exploration drilling in 2015, but they were una- ble to move forward because of security issues
in the area.
Búzi lies within the Mozambique sedimen-
tary basin, which has yet to be explored exten- sively. Gulf Oil did discover some natural gas there in 1962, but it determined that the reserves were not large enough to be commercially viable at that time.
Now, though, Mozambican authorities are more optimistic. Omar Mitha, the CEO of ENH, told Upstream last month on the sidelines of the Africa Oil Week conference that the Búzi block would probably be able to support a gas-to- power project.
Búzi block onshore Mozambique (image: Petromindo)
Block 17 lies about 150km from the Angolan coast in waters ranging from 600 to 1,400 metres deep.
Two new blocks
In related news, Total said it had struck a deal with Sonangol on participation in two offshore projects that could serve as the core of a new production hub offshore Luanda.
In a separate press release, the French com- pany said that it was set to serve as operator of both Block 20/11 and Block 21/09. Equity in Block 20/11, which lies in the central Kwanza Basin in waters 300 to 1,700 metres deep, will be split 50% to Total, 30% to BP and 20% to Sonangol.
Block 21/09, which is in the south central
section of the Kwanza Basin in waters 1,400 to 1,600 metres deep, will be divided between Total, with 80%, and Sonangol, with 20%.
The press release did not provide many details about the project. It did say, though, that Total had agreed to pay Sonangol $400mn upon the conclusion of the agreement and another $100mn when it makes a final investment deci- sion (FID), plus up to $250mn more in addi- tional payments over the life of the project. It also said it would establish an operating com- pany with Sonangol three years after beginning production.
Oil has already been discovered at both licence areas, in fields known as Bicuar, Cameia, Galfinho and Mavinga. Total has said it will look for additional reserves.
Indonesian company preparing
to drill at Mozambique’s Búzi block
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Week 50 18•December•2019
