E&P

The occasion was marked by a formal signing ceremony in Harare.

Invictus Energy Ltd's 80%-owned Geo Associates (Pvt) Ltd has executed the Petroleum Production Sharing Agreement with the Republic of Zimbabwe

Geo Associates remains the operator and holder of Special Grant 4571 in Zimbabwe that contains the Mukuyu gas-condensate discovery.

The occasion was marked by a formal signing ceremony in Harare, attended by senior representatives of Geo Associates and the Governement of the Republic of Zimbabwe. The PPSA was executed by the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, Mthuli Ncube; Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Engineer Polite Kambamura, and Minister of Energy and Power Development, July Moyo on behalf of the Republic of Zimbabwe.

Invictus CEO and managing director, Scott Macmillan, said, "Execution of the Petroleum Production Sharing Agreement represents a landmark milestone for both the Cabora Bassa Project and the broader development of Zimbabwe’s oil and gas industry.

“The PPSA establishes a robust, transparent and globally competitive framework that provides longterm certainty for all stakeholders, while creating a strong foundation to accelerate development
activities across the basin.

“Importantly, the agreement aligns the interests of Geo Associates, Invictus Energy, One Gas Resources, the Republic of Zimbabwe and the Mutapa Investment Fund in a genuine partnership structure designed to unlock the full value of the Cabora Bassa Project for our shareholders and the people of Zimbabwe.

“With this critical framework now in place, the Company is firmly focused on advancing the next phase of exploration, appraisal and development activities, including the upcoming high impact Musuma-1 exploration well.”

Kambamura said, “The execution of the PPSA marks a defining milestone in the advancement of Zimbabwe’s petroleum sector and reflects the significant progress made in establishing the foundations for a sustainable upstream oil and gas industry.

“The Cabora Bassa Project has already demonstrated the vast potential of the basin through the Mukuyu gas discovery, and the Government remains committed to supporting the continued exploration and appraisal of this strategic national resource.

“Through this agreement, Zimbabwe has established a framework that balances investor confidence with national participation and long-term value creation for the country.”

The deal remains subject to Overseas Direct Investment approval.

Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) plc's associated company, Antler Global Limited, has secured official clearance to advance its farm-out agreement with Fuhai after receiving approval from the Ministry for Mining and Hydrocarbons Department of Equatorial Guinea

The deal remains subject to Overseas Direct Investment approval from the Shandong Provincial government.

Europa has a 42.9% equity interest in Antler which, on completion of the FOA, will hold a 40% working interest in the EG-08 PSC, and remain as operator, with 40% held by Fuhai and the remaining 20% held by GEPetrol (Guinea Equatorial de Petróleos), the national oil company of Equatorial Guinea, representing the State’s interest.

The company is planning to drill the Barracuda-1 well at the earliest opportunity, which is expected to be during early 2027.

William Holland, Chief Executive Officer of Europa, said, “I am pleased to have received approval from the Ministry and I would like to thank the team at MMHD for their ongoing support as we progress this project to drilling. Alongside our partners at Fuhai, we have been working hard to assemble the drilling team needed to spud the Barracuda-1 well at the earliest opportunity. Once we have received ODI approval, we will then be able to secure a rig. I look forward to updating the market of our progress in due course.”

The agreement also stretches the concession life by up to 20 years.

The Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources has signed the consolidated and amended concession agreement, officiating Capricorn Energy's rights over its existing Egyptian Western Desert concession agreements in which it has a 50% participating interest held jointly with Cheiron Oil and Gas Limited

With the Minister’s signature, the new agreement has taken effect for operations to start from 1 July 2025, from which date the merged concession terms became applicable and Capricorn’s work programme obligations commenced.

The agreement also stretches the concession life by up to 20 years with a 10-year development term and two five-year optional extension terms. It comes with amended fiscal terms to promote investment, and merges the existing concessions to increase operational and financial efficiencies.

Randy Neely, chief executive, Capricorn Energy, said, "We are delighted to have received the final signed approval for our consolidation agreement from Minister Badawi. We appreciate EGPC and our operating partner, Cheiron, for their collaboration throughout this process and look forward to working together under the improved terms." 

Earlier in the year, Capricorn had reported liquids-rich development drilling from the Badr El Din (BED) concession. A waterflood programme initiated in the field resulted in increased production levels from Egypt for Capricorn Energy's 2025 report at 20,024 barrels of oil equivalent per day, surpassing the year's guidance of 17000-21000 bopd. 

ReconAfrica is emphasising on identifying appraisal drilling locations. (Image source: ReconAfrica)

For the first quarter ended 31 March 2026, and subsequent period, Reconnaissance Energy Africa Ltd has commenced production testing operations of the Kavango West 1X well, and is currently focusing on downhole testing

With equipment, trucks and crews arriving on site, preparations are currently underway for the testing works. This will be followed by the cement bond log test and downhole perforation operations. Flow testing are on the pipeline once the final service items arrive on site. 

With a single zone taking up to 10 days of production testing, it adds up to two months for the whole process to be completed. Production casing has been set to total depth of the well which will allow the KW1X wellbore to be utilised as future producer upon successful test results.

ReconAfrica is emphasising on identifying appraisal drilling locations on the Kavango discovery following the completion of the production test at KW1X. Preparations for the appraisal well are proceeding with specific permitting applications and site preparations underway for the Kavango West 2A (“KW2A”) appraisal well. 

All the testing operations are based on permits secured from the regulatory authorities for both ReconAfrica and its service suppliers. 

During the first quarter, ReconAfrica has also received a one-year extension to the PEL 073 Second Renewal Exploration Period, extending such period to January 29, 2027.

The company has also commenced reprocessing of 3D seismic on the Ngulu Block offshore Gabon.