E&P

The oil price has risen further with the escalation of hostilities between the US and Iran, with Brent crude standing at around US$86/bbl on Tuesday 14 July

Recent days have seen renewed US attacks on Iranian infrastructure, and Iranian attacks on US bases in the region as well as ships and oil tankers, along with President Trump’s announcement of a 20% fee on cargo transiting the Strait and a renewed blockade of Iranian ports.

Brent crude had fallen to around US$70/bbl earlier this month following the announcement of the ceasefire, and the IEA had predicted in its July monthly oil market report that the market could return to surplus by the end of the year. This prediction looks to have been upended by recent events, with the risk to disruption to shipping once again raising the prospect of supply shortages.

“The escalation disrupts global energy supplies, with a near halt in ship navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, and heightens the risk of further escalation, including targeting oil production and refining infrastructure in the region, which could make the damage structural rather than temporary,” noted Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com. “…we saw widespread targeting of the Iranian mainland and islands and targeting of American bases at several points in the region, in addition to targeting ships and oil tankers, and these events are still recurring until the time of writing. To make matters worse, we saw an unexpected and sudden return of escalation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis in Yemen.

“With this stormy series of events, we must calmly rearrange our hypotheses. I believe we are now in a round of negotiating under fire, following the failure at the table after the signing of the recent memorandum of understanding. The major obstacle lay in reaching an understanding regarding the implementation of the fifth article of the signed memorandum of understanding, which concerns the management of the Strait of Hormuz.”

“The latest developments have shifted market focus from oversupply concerns to the risk of prolonged disruptions to Gulf energy exports, with the duration of US enforcement measures and the security of Hormuz now likely to determine whether oil prices remain elevated,” commented MUFG Research.

Crispus Nyaga, research analyst at Empire FX, said, “Looking ahead, prices could extend their climb, potentially nearing previous highs, should shipping through the Strait of Hormuz come under severe restrictions and regional security deteriorate further. However, efforts by Gulf oil exporters to circumvent the waterway could help ease the upside pressure to some extent. A return to diplomatic talks and a formal end to military operations could support a recovery in maritime traffic, allowing energy exports to normalise and prices to ease gradually, although this scenario could remain unlikely over the short term.”

Tolls in the Strait now look impossible to avoid, commented deVere Group’s CEO Nigel Green. “Investors keep treating Hormuz disruption as a spike that fades once the fighting stops. This time, for me, looks different,” he said.

“Once a toll exists in practice, taking it away again becomes its own political fight. I would price this as a permanent cost of moving global energy, not a headline that blows over.”

Reconnaissance Energy Africa, along with its partners BW Energy (20% WI) and the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (“NAMCOR”, 10% carried WI), has announced preliminary production testing results from the three lowest zones in the Elandshoek formation on the Kavango West 1X discovery well

ReconAfrica has completed production testing the lowest three zones located in the Elandshoek formation. Testing in the uppermost zone in the Elandshoek successfully produced natural gas to surface on three separate flow tests. Production samples have been collected for lab analysis with the rest of the produced hydrocarbons flared at surface. The results of the compositional analysis are expected in the coming weeks from samples to be sent to laboratories in the United States.

Testing equipment is currently being moved up hole to continue production testing the three identified zones in the shallower Huttenberg formation. The three Huttenberg zones will test 182 metres of reservoir section, including 76 net metres of hydrocarbon pay identified on well log tests. It is estimated that testing may take up to approximately 10 days per zone and therefore management estimates providing the next production test update by approximately late August.

Brian Reinsborough, President and CEO, commented, “We are very excited to have produced hydrocarbons to surface on the Kavango West production test, which are the first hydrocarbons ever produced to surface onshore Namibia. Knowing that the Elandshoek formation had naturally fractured carbonate rocks, we are pleased to learn that those fractures support production. Our operations team is working on a possible open hole horizontal or deviated sidetrack from this wellbore to intersect a larger reservoir interval and the natural fracture network across the structure. Based on global analogue reservoirs, we believe a significant uplift in productivity rates could be realized by this operation. Our operational team is now focused on production testing the significant net hydrocarbon column in the Huttenburg formation.”

The Libya NOC has found the OMV Austria-operated Essar discovery commercially viable

This comes after the B1-106/4 well was drilled. The company had framed a development plan evaluation process, confirming the discovery’s commercial viability, and submitted it to the NOC. 

Total reserves from the discovery are estimated at 195 million barrels of oil from the upper and lower Sabil reservoirs, with an expected production capacity of about 5,000 barrels per day.

Development work for the discovery will begin under the operator, Zueitina Oil Operations Company, and is expected to bring it into production as quickly as possible thanks to the site’s proximity to existing surface facilities. 

Libya NOC has been putting in a lot of efforts to ramp up the region's offshore resources, granting several licenses to oil majors. MOL Group has signed a production sharing agreement with its partners, Repsol and Türkiye Petrolleri AO (TPAO) for an offshore exploration area in the Mediterranean Sea, after being granted an exploration licence by LIbya's NOC. 

“We are excited that our joint project with Repsol and TPAO has entered a new phase with the signing of a production sharing agreement. This also means a new milestone in the revitalisation of Libya’s oil and gas industry and we are honoured to be part of it. Libya holds strategic importance for Europe and offers an exceptional offshore exploration opportunity in North Africa. We are committed to contributing our expertise to Libya’s economy, while also strengthening the energy security of Central Eastern Europe through a new source.“ said Zsombor Marton, executive vice president of MOL Group Exploration and Production. 

The NOC also saw the start-up of hydrocarbon production from Sabratha Compression Project, which is a joint venture with Eni by the name of Mellitah Oil & Gas. The Sabratha Compression Project comprises an installation of a new 1,600-ton compression module on the Sabratha platform, equipped with new compression trains, providing an overall compression capacity of about 440 MMscfd.

Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas has received formal Ministerial approval from the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy of Namibia for the Section 11 assignment relating to the Company's previously announced farm-out of its 85% participating interest in Petroleum Exploration Licence 98 (PEL 98), offshore Namibia, to Namibian company, Lamda Energy

The receipt of this approval demonstrates continued regulatory progress within Namibia's highly prospective offshore sector and reflects the Ministry's ongoing commitment to advancing commercial transactions and exploration activity across the country.

The Company also confirms that the Section 11 application relating to its recently announced farm-out transaction with BP Namibia Energy Limited ("bp Namibia") across Petroleum Exploration Licences 97, 99 and 100 has now been submitted to the Ministry and will be the next key regulatory milestone in progressing that transaction. Eco is also pleased to confirm that the Section 11 application relating to the Company's recently announced farm-out transaction on Block 1 CBK to Navitas Petroleum LP ("Navitas") was formally submitted and received by the Petroleum Agency South Africa ("PASA") on 26 June 2026.

Gil Holzman, co-founder and chief executive officer of Eco Atlantic, said, "Ministerial approval for the PEL 98 transaction is a significant milestone for Eco and our partners as we move the Farm-Out towards completion. Eco would like to express its sincere appreciation to the Ministry, the Upstream Petroleum Unit, and all parties involved in facilitating this process.

"It is also highly encouraging to see broader momentum across Namibia's upstream sector continue to grow. Ministerial approvals are progressing, providing increased confidence for companies operating in the country and supporting the advancement of exploration and commercial transactions across Namibia's offshore acreage.

"With our farm-out from PEL 98 in its final stages and the Section 11 applications for both our Block 1 CBK transaction with Navitas, and PEL97,99 & 100 transaction with bp Namibia submitted, we look forward to continuing to advance our portfolio of world-class assets in one of the world's most prospective offshore exploration regions."