Page 8 - AfrOil Week 03 2023

AfrOil INVESTMENT AfrOil

The second licensing round included five fields (Image: Uganda Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development)
According to Frank Mugisha, the Ugandan UNOC’s ambitions of eventually attaining the
Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development’s required capacity to become an operator.”
assistant commissioner and licensing manager Both Turaco and Kasuruban have been
for upstream development, the exploration explored before but remain undeveloped. Her-
licences for both blocks will have an initial term itage Oil (UK) had previously looked for hydro-
of two years. The government will give UNOC carbons at the 637-square km Turaco block.
the option of renewing its licence for six years, However, it abandoned its search in 2004 and
while DGR Global will have a two-year renewal let the licence area revert to state ownership.
option, he said on January 12. Ugandan authorities then included Turaco,
Kampala is offering the state-owned com- along with Kasuruban, among the five blocks
pany more time for multiple reasons, including included in the country’s second licensing
the nature of the exploration work that will be round, which took place in 2019. As a result
required at Kasuruban and the fact there is lim- of those auctions, Tullow Oil (UK/Ireland)
ited data available on the site, he commented. gained the right to explore the 1,285-square km
UNOC is also required under its licence to find Kasuruban block, which straddles the Hoima,
a partner, he noted. Buliisa and Masindi districts. The company did
“Their licence is tagged on having a partner, make some discoveries but let the site revert to
because as you know, UNOC will be getting the state after determining that its finds were not
funds from government coffers and these funds of commercial size.
are definitely risk capital. So ideally, I would not The other three blocks included in the 2019
want government to waste a lot having these licensing rounds were Ngaji, Omuka and Avivi
funds injected into exploration. So UNOC will Altogether, those five blocks cover a total area of
find a partner who will now come and inject 4,928 square km.
funds. And in some of the areas, UNOC will Apart from DGR Global and UNOC, the
be carried over so we would want the partner other companies shortlisted had been Total E&P
to take most of the risks so that the risks are not Activities Petrolieres (France) and a joint ven-
embedded on ... the national oil company,” he ture of PetroAfrik Energy Resources East Africa
was quoted as saying by The Observer. Ltd and Niger Delta Petroleum Resources Ltd
Meanwhile, UNOC’s CEO Proscovia Nab- of Nigeria. Uganda’s Ministry of State for ICT
banja described the Kasuruban award as a and National Guidance said in a statement that
boon for the company, saying: “Participating in Kampala hopes to issue two more licences as
the second licensing round is well in line with part of the second licensing round. ™

POLICY
Algeria unveils plan to protect oil facilities

ALGERIA ALGERIA’S government has unveiled a new group Sonatrach, said on January 16.
plan that will cost $400mn to protect oil and gas Under the plan, 22,000 security guards will
fields in the country against potential terrorist be deployed to protect oil and gas infrastructure
acts, Tewfik Hakkar, the head of the state energy security systems, industrial sites and pipelines.

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 03 19•January•2023