Exploration

Block 3/05 Joint Venture partners have signed an agreement with Sonangol.

With an aim to achieve a potential gross production uplift of around 9,000 barrels of oil per day, Afentra has secured contracts to advance its accelerated two-well drilling programme on Block 3/05 offshore Angola

The primary objective will help define the material upside potential in the Pacassa SW area (up to 70 mmbo recoverable) and the Impala field (up to 50 mmbo recoverable). 

The Block 3/05 Joint Venture partners have signed a commercial agreement with Sonangol to use the Borr Grid jackup rig for the well programme. It will begin with the drilling of Pacassa SW, which will determine the next well eligible for drilling, be it the Pacassa SW injection well or the Impala-2 development well.

The Pacassa field which is anticipated to hold up to 210 mmbbls of oil will be drilled from the Pacassa F4 platform. If the drilling is a success, the well will be put to completion before connecting it to the existing production infrastructure. 

The Impala field, on the other hand, can potentially play a significant role in defining the upside potential of the field that can contain up to 200mmbo of oil in place. Impala-2 will be drilled from the Impala wellhead platform into the Impala field around 1000m from the existing Impala-1 production well. Upon completion the well will be connected to the existing production infrastructure. The outcome will also assist in defining the optimum Impala field development which has up to 50mmbo of incremental recoverable resources.

"The ability to accelerate our drilling programme is a pivotal moment for Afentra, marking a clear transition to the execution phase of our organic growth strategy. This opportunity is a direct result of the strong, collaborative partnership we have with Sonangol and the Joint Venture. The funding structure agreed with Sonangol allows us to fast-track the unlocking of significant potential value from both the Pacassa SW area and the Impala field without impacting our 2026 cash capex. This programme is designed to efficiently convert resources into production, growing volumes through our existing infrastructure and delivering tangible value for our shareholders. Crucially, it will also provide invaluable data to de-risk and define future prospectivity across the wider Block 3/05 area, optimising our long-term development plan," said Paul McDade, Chief Executive Officer of Afentra. 

The BED facility will undergo maintenance shutdowns twice in 2026.

Liquids-rich development drilling and the ongoing waterflood programme in the Badr El Din (BED) concession has 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

The new guidance for 2026 is hence set at 18000-22000 boepd, also driven by a forecast to generate 43% liquids. A four-rig drilling programme has been put in place throughout the year with a special focus on the liquids-rich area. It will also include activities on the gas-prone Bahariya target which was found last year. Operating costs for the year are anticipated around US$5-7 barrels of oil equivalent. The US$217mn collected from Egypt in 2025 will cover the funding for the sustainably designed drilling plan.

The BED facility will undergo maintenance shutdowns twice in the year.

The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and the Egyptian Cabinet have approved the merged concession agreement, with formal ratification expected within the first half of 2026.

"2025 was a year of significant operational, strategic and financial progress for Capricorn, marked by a number of milestones across our Egypt operations.

"In May we received approval from the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) to consolidate eight of our existing Egyptian concession agreements into a single, merged concession agreement, unlocking significant fiscal and operational benefits which should allow us to extract additional value from our existing portfolio. The new agreement, anticipated to receive parliamentary ratification in H1 2026, secures access to an additional development lease area and two open exploration areas adjacent to our existing acreage. These additions supported a 20.2 mmboe increase of working interest (WI) 2P reserves (certified at year end), enhancing future development potential. The improved fiscal terms will drive increased investment and cash flow across a range of oil prices and at $80 per bbl our netback improves from $18 to $23 per boe. Furthermore, it includes a 60% increase in gas pricing for incremental volumes from both existing fields and new discoveries.

"Operations in Egypt delivered full year production of 20,024 boepd, exceeding the midpoint of 2025 guidance, supported by liquids-rich development drilling and the ongoing waterflood programme in the Badr El Din (BED) concession.

"Despite a volatile macroeconomic environment and fluctuating commodity prices, we collected $217m from Egypt, reducing the Company’s accounts receivable to $86m.

"Capricorn’s progress in 2025 provides a robust platform to build a cash-generative business. A key priority for 2026 will be accelerating development activities in the merged concession area.

"Our strategic priorities for the coming year are to maximise value from our Egyptian assets through disciplined investment, prioritise shareholder value, and continue to explore value-accretive opportunities, primarily in Egypt, with a secondary focus in the UK North Sea and the broader MENA region," said Randy Neely, the chief executive of Capricorn Energy.

The NGC project is driven by gas produced offshore Quiluma field. (Image source: bp)

bp and Eni venture, Azule Energy, has announced start-up of gas production from the Quiluma field, part of the New Gas Consortium (NGC) in Angola, which is initially expected to reach 150 mn standard cu/ft per day and ramp up to 330 mn standard cu/ft per day by the year end

A first for Angola's non-associated gas development, the NGC project is driven by gas produced from the shallow water offshore Quiluma field. This gas is directed for export from the Angola LNG plant following treatment at an onshore processing facility.

Azule Energy is operator of the NGC, with a 37.4% participation, in partnership with Cabinda Gulf Oil Company (CABGOC) with 31%, Sonangol E&P with 19.8% and TotalEnergies with 11.8% and ANPG as the National Concessionaire.

Gordon Birrell, bp’s executive vice president for production and operations, and Azule board member, said, "The safe delivery of the NGC project is another example of bp’s strategic progress and demonstrates what strong partnerships and collaboration can deliver. This project marks an important step for Angola’s energy system and strengthens the country’s energy mix as it looks to enhance its position as a global player in the natural gas market.” 

This development comes following the inauguration the project’s gas treatment plant in November 2025. The NGC start-up is the latest in a series of upstream advancements such as the Agogo field at the Agogo Integrated West Hub (Agogo IWH) project, in block 15/06, offshore Angola, and the Ndungu start-up in February 2026.

The ultra-deepwater drillship, Sonangol Quenguela, will continue to operate in Angola.

Seadrill's joint venture with Sonangol-affiliate, Sonadrill Holding, has been awarded a contract extension

The ultra-deepwater drillship, Sonangol Quenguela, will continue to operate in Angola for an additional 480 days now that its seven-well priced option has already been exercised. The extension secures availability of the rig till June 2028. 

Seadrill earns a management fee for providing management, operational and technical support to Sonadrill. 

Sonangol is conducting well tests on the TO-14 well in Block KON-11 while engineering work continues too. Well clean-up operations using nitrogen resulted in significant water production with oil shows and nominal oil saturation levels. 

Sonangol has recently received financial backing from African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), covering the national oil company's projected operating and capital expenditure with a US$1.75bn syndicated receivables purchase facility. It has been designed with Sonangol's export-linked trade structures in mind, aligning with Afreximbank’s push for Africa’s prominence in global trade by promoting demand-intensive commodities for export. This strategic financing will support Sonangol in unlocking better access into the export market, which can prove to be a goldmine for the region given global oil supply volatilities.