Page 10 - AfrOil Week 33 2019

AfrOil PROJECTS & COMPANIES AfrOil
Kenya set to endorse Qatar Petroleum’s Lamu Basin deal
KENYA’S government intends to endorse Qatar Petroleum’s plans to join an o shore oil explora- tion project in the Lamu Basin.
Andrew Kamau, the principal secretary of the petroleum department of Kenya’s Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, said last week that Nairobi would endorse the farm-in deal, which Qatar Petroleum signed with Italy’s Eni and France’s Total in July. “Yes, the approvals will be given,” he told Business Daily.
Kamau did not say when the government would o cially ratify the agreement between the parties, which provides for the state-owned Qatari company to take a 25% stake in three blocks in the Lamu Basin. Qatar Petroleum, Eni and Total are waiting for Kenyan regulatory authorities to endorse the deal before they move forward.
Under the agreement, Eni, the operator of the project, will reduce its share from 55% to 41.25% to contribute 13.75% to the Qatari com- pany, and Total will go from 45% to 33.75% to
contribute 11.25%. As a result, Qatar Petroleum will have a 25% stake in the L11A, L11B and L12 o shore blocks.
Together, these blocks cover an area of about 15,000 square km. ey lie in a section of the Indian Ocean that is 1,000-3,000 metres deep. e partners hope to nd light sweet crude oil at the blocks and begin production in 2022.
Qatar Petroleum is entering into the pro- ject at a time when other oil and gas operators appear reluctant to continue work in Kenya’s o shore zone, with some citing concerns about the high cost of deepwater exploration and development and others pointing to security issues in Lamu County. e Anglo-Dutch giant Royal Dutch Shell has backed out of plans to develop the L10A and L10B blocks, while Can- ada’s Africa Oil has quit L9. Other companies, including Erin Energy, have suspended opera- tions in the area, and Kenya’s government has halted work on other projects in the wake of territorial disputes in the Indian Ocean. ™
Kenya High Commission
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 33 20•August•2019