Sudan, South Sudan Claim Oil Production Boon, But How Much?
South Sudan’s oil output is up 40% in the past year to 165,000 b/d as a cooperation agreement with Sudan comes to fruition, Juba claims. The figures may be inflated, but any increase in revenue is a welcome boost to two struggling economies. MEES, 8 February 2019 A resumption of production from fields in former [...]
Sonatrach: Can Shake-Up Haul Lumbering Behemoth Into The 21st Century?
MEES, 24 August 2018 Sonatrach president Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour has been quietly carrying out a major restructuring of the firm’s management, including the creation of several new divisions and a change of personnel in other key posts. The changes include the creation of three new vice-president positions: VP finance, to which executive finance director Mohamed [...]
Libya: Fractured Institutions Fail To Distribute Oil Revenue Gains
MEES, 24 August 2018 Libya’s oil production recovered to more than 1mn b/d in mid-August following a collapse to just 400,000 b/d early in July. The reopening of key export terminals in the east of the country has enabled a resumption of production from oil fields in the Sirte basin ( MEES, 13 July ). [...]
Libya’s Financial Black Hole
MEES, 17 August 2018 Libya near-balanced its budget in 1H 2018. But this was ‘thanks’ to chronic state weakness that left spending 21% under budget. Revenues were up with higher oil prices, but non-oil revenue remains abysmal. The UN plans an audit of Libya’s finances in a bid to help tackle corruption. But, if the [...]
South Sudan: China Oil displaces Unipec in Dar Blend marketing
African Energy, 26 July 2018 China Oil has displaced Unipec as the dominant marketer of South Sudan’s Dar Blend crude, lifting cargoes in all but two months of 2018. China Oil has been contracted to lift 9.2m bbls of crude so far this year, almost a third of the country’s 29.6m-bbl production, and 43% of [...]
South Sudan signals end to crude cargoes
African Energy, 26 July 2018 In lifting contracts agreed by Juba in early July for crude shipments in August, there is no cargo for Sudan Petroleum Corporation, signalling an end to the diversion of oil cargoes to Khartoum to pay South Sudan’s oil debts. Energy minister Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth said in February that the transfers [...]
South Sudan Coffers Empty Amid Crippling Crude ‘Diversions’ To Khartoum
South Sudan has diverted crude worth $1.6bn to Sudan in the past three years to pay off arrears in transit and compensation levies. Despite claims to the contrary there appears to be no end in sight to such transfers. MEES, 11 May 2018 More than four years into a civil war that seems as impervious [...]
US imposes South Sudan oil sanctions
African Energy, 5 April 2018 The US government has imposed licensing restrictions on South Sudan’s Ministry of Petroleum, Ministry of Mining, state-owned Nile Petroleum Corporation (Nilepet) and 12 other oil-related organisations. The restrictions were issued on 21 March by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) at the US Department of Commerce “as part of [...]
Algeria Gas Set For Record 2018 With Start-Up Of Key Southwest Fields
MEES, 2 March 2018 Algeria’s 2017 gas output was only just shy of record levels set the previous year. With the second of two key ‘Southwest Gas Project’ components starting up this week, the country can expect new records in 2018. The 24 February start-up of output at the Timimoun gas field makes it the [...]
Delayed Projects To Shave Cumulative 80bcm From Algeria’s Gas Output By 2020
MEES, 14 July 2017 If the Timimoun and Touat projects had come on stream in early 2014, Ahnet at the beginning of 2015 and Reggane North at the beginning of 2016 – targets that back in 2010 looked conservative – and assuming they maintained plateau rates until the end of June this year, they would [...]
South Sudan pushes for oil fields to reopen
African Energy – 11 September 2014 The government of South Sudan is pushing for the restart of production from outlying fields in the critical oil territory in Upper Nile, and is evaluating the resumption of output from shut-down fields in Unity State, according to a senior official at the Ministry of Petroleum and Mining. Production [...]
ExxonMobil set to pull out of consortium for South Sudan Block B
African Energy – 7 August 2014 ExxonMobil plans to withdraw from a consortium lined up to explore three oil blocks in South Sudan, according to sources in Juba. The blocks together make up Block B, a 118,000km2 area of Jonglei state divided into three in 2012.
Algeria looks to develop shale gas sector
New wells could be critical to boosting the country’s standing as an international gas exporter, but challenges persist. Al Jazeera – 28 July 2014 Algeria has announced plans to drill four shale gas wells by the end of 2014 as it begins assessing the commercial viability of a resource base estimated to be the third-largest [...]
South Sudan budget sets unrealistic expectations
CNBC – 25 July 2014 This is an interview I did on South Sudan’s unfathomable war budget for CNBC’s Closing Bell Africa programme.
Algeria opens new territory to oil drilling
Energy companies remain wary, though, after deadly 2013 attack on natural gas facility Al Jazeera – 28 January 2014 One year ago, a terrorist attack on a natural gas facility in southern Algeria led to the deaths of 67 people after Algerian troops tried to rescue hundreds of hostages taken by an al-Qaeda-linked group. Now, [...]
Business and Terrorism in Algeria
The Atlantic Council – 24 January 2014 A year after forty workers were killed in a terrorist attack against one of Algeria’s largest gas facilities on January 16, 2013, serious reservations remain about the provision of security at the site. The government’s partners on the project, the UK’s BP and Norway’s Statoil, have not yet [...]
South Sudan plays dangerous game of politics with Khartoum
African Energy – 16 January 2014 Reports that both the government of South Sudan and nominal opposition leader Riek Machar have been in talks with Khartoum over securing control of South Sudan’s oilfields have roused fears that the already bloody fight could escalate further. Speaking at Juba airport on 6 January at the conclusion of [...]
Foreign oil and gas workers in Algeria – not yet back at work
The Economist – 15 January 2014 A YEAR has passed since a terrorist attack against one of Algeria’s largest natural gas facilities resulted in the deaths of 39 foreign workers. Yet the Algerian government has yet to convince international oil companies that it is safe enough for overseas staff to return to the site at [...]
Sudan fighting slashes oil production
African Energy – 9 January 2014 A rebellion in South Sudan has already slashed oil output by around 100,000 b/d. Production from Unity State, amounting to more than 40,000 b/d, has completely ceased and there has been an estimated drop in output of more than 50,000 b/d from fields in Upper Nile State. In Unity [...]
How Algeria’s hostage crisis unfolded
31 January 2013 BBC Radio 4 Last week I contributed to the early stages of the research for a BBC Radio 4 programme that aired last night on the terrorist attacks on the In Amenas gas plant in Algeria two weeks ago that left at least 48 hostages dead. It’s well worth a listen. The [...]
Algerian government seeks to salvage energy trade after attack
The Independent – 26 January 2013 Until a few days ago, workers at the In Amenas gas plant in the Algerian Sahara lived a simple, if confined life. Working 12-hour shifts and seven-day weeks offered little opportunity for leisure. But when there was down time, workers had at their disposal state-of-the art training and sports [...]
Algeria moves to bolster oil and gas reserves
Sonatrach plans five new refineries and accelerated gas exploration as part of $80bn spending programme In early November, Algerian state energy company Sonatrach announced plans to invest $80bn in oil and gas projects over the next five years. The plans include a 50 per cent increase in the firm’s annual spend, to $15bn in 2013 [...]
South Sudan plans to resume oil production in September
Sudan intransigence on border issue could affect vital oil deal between Sudan and South Sudan South Sudan is planning to resume oil production in September, after a transit deal was reached with Sudan in early August, according to Pagan Amum, the country’s lead negotiator with Sudan at the African Union. It shut down exports of [...]
Gas still a challenge for resurgent Middle East market
The combination of the global economic crisis and political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa made 2011 a tough year for investment in the region. But the significant increase in oil prices and the return of a degree of stability to several of the affected markets means the outlook for the coming year [...]
