Page 19 - AfrOil Week 20 2020

AfrOil
NEWS IN BRIEF
AfrOil
Commenting on the agreement, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs and the President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum, said: “The acquisition of working interests in these two blocks marks an important addition to QP’s upstream portfolio in Africa, and repre- sents the first investment for QP in Côte d’Ivo- ire. Africa’s offshore is a key target area for QP’s international growth strategy. We are pleased to enter into this promising exploration opportu- nity with our long-term partner, Total, an expe- rienced operator with historical presence in Côte d’Ivoire. We would like to thank the Ivorian authorities, and our partners in these blocks for their support.”
The farm-in agreement is subject to custom- ary approvals by the Côte d’Ivoire Government. Qatar Petroleum, May 18 2020
ADM Energy provides
update on acquisition of
further interest in OML 113
ADM Energy, an oil and gas investing company quoted on AIM, is pleased to announce it has reached agreement with EER (Colobus) Nige- ria Limited (EER) for the immediate payment, in cash and shares, of the $250,000 deposit due as part of the sale and purchase agreement to acquire a further interest of 2.25% in Oil Mining Lease no. 113 (OML 113) from EER announced on February 24, 2020.
KEY POINTS: payment of $250,000 deposit in cash and shares as part of the sale and pur- chase agreement; ADM is in the process of applying for the consent of the Nigerian Min- ister of Petroleum Resources for the transfer of the interest from EER to ADM, which takes the Company closer to completing the Agreement; subject to completion of the Agreement, ADM’s participating interest in OML 113 will increase to 4.9% with corresponding revenue and cost bearing interests increasing to 9.2% and 12.3% respectively; recently strengthened balance sheet and cash position following Loan Facil- ities Agreement, Directors’ Subscriptions and
Debt Conversion, as reported on April 27, 2020; operations at OML 113 remain largely uninter- rupted, with production levels remaining stable.
Osamede Okhomina, CEO of ADM, said: “Keeping to our stated plan, we have completed the second stage of this agreement with EER, taking us another step closer to concluding the transaction and increasing our position in OML 113, which is a high-quality asset. Despite the wider, global macroeconomic issues, we believe the longer-term outlook remains very positive within our market. We are focused on continu- ing to execute our strategy and are well placed to do so having recently strengthened our financial position.”
ADM Energy Plc, May 13 2020
PERFORMANCE
Equatorial Guinea
announces compliance
with OPEC production
cut obligations
Equatorial Guinea has announced that it is fully complying with its production cuts obligations under the record OPEC+ global oil cuts deal reached in April 2020 and which took effect on May 1.
While announcing the country’s compliance, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima also paid tribute to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Algeria for going above and beyond their obligations and playing a substantial role in rebalancing the market.
“I believe that the solidarity of OPEC and OPEC+ members is key for our industry this year and as we enter a recovery phase. The agree- ment between OPEC and OPEC+ countries is the kind of leadership that our industry needs to navigate very uncertain waters and Equato- rial Guinea will keep supporting such decisions and ensuring it is fully compliant with them,” declared Obiang Lima.
Africa Energy Chamber, May 18 2020
MOVES
African Energy Chamber
says safety of oil workers
must be a top priority
Some charter flights with oil industry personnel and medical equipment have been allowed to
land a few oil-producing countries like Nigeria, Angola, Equatorial Guinea and others lately, allowing a much-needed rotation of oil sector workers.
The African Energy Chamber believes that such charter flight operations led by interna- tional oil companies such as ExxonMobil in Equatorial Guinea must be expanded across all oil-producing states and governments should immediately facilitate these movements.
Upon arrival in oil cities, all personnel on board will go under mandatory quarantine. This is in full compliance with the Advisory Guide- lines for the Management and Safety of Oil Workers issued by the African Energy Chamber last week.
Because of sustained lockdowns and travel restrictions globally, oil workers have been forced to stay on site longer and work extra hours, increasing the risk of lost time injury across oil industry operations.
“Whether oil companies have been forced to maintain personnel on site for extended periods of time or withdraw their workers altogether, the situation is no longer viable. Oil workers need to be able to rotate safely in and out of the work sites, and fields need to be maintained and operated by sound and rested personnel,” stated NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman at the African Energy Chamber.
“We urge oil-producing countries to work with oil and air companies to adhere to the Chamber’s Advisory Guidelines and ensure a safe movement of oil sector personnel across the continent. We continue to have positive dialogue with governments and the industry and we are confidentaboutasolutionverysoon,”headded.
Amid extended travel restrictions, the Afri- can Energy Chamber is urging all stakeholders to put the safety of oil workers and the ability of oil companies to continue operating at the top of industry priorities. Several additional special flights can and should be organised in and out of African oil producing countries.
There is also a space for commercial airlines to operate special charter flights between key oil countries such as Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo, South Sudan, Angola, Ghana and Nige- ria on a bi-monthly basis in which oil companies could book seats for their personnel. With- out such movement taking place, production across African oil and gas fields could be greatly impacted and the safety of our workers could put in jeopardy.
The African oil sector has already been bru- tally hit by Covid-19 and the oil price crash. We need to show a lot more commonsense and pragmatism as we work on a comeback. Adding to the pain with restrictions that handicap the industry will only lead to a longer and slower recovery.
African Energy Chamber, May 18 2020
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