Exploration

Contracts with multiple scopes accounted for 9%. (Image source: GlobalData)

Global oil and gas contract activity witnessed a notable 47% quarter-on-quarter increase in total disclosed value to reach US$54.91bn in Q2 2024 from US$37.3bn in Q1, reveals GlobalData

The data and analytics company's latest report, 'Oil and Gas Industry Contracts Review by Sector, Region, Terrain and Top Contractors and Issuers, Q2 2024', reveals that the overall oil and gas contracts volume decreased marginally from 1,473 in Q1 2024 to 1,377 in Q2 2024. 

Pritam Kad, oil and gas analyst at GlobalData, said, “Petrobras' monumental awards, including the US$8.15bn P-84 and P-85 FPSO construction contract to Seatrium, the US$1.8bn contract for subsea engineering to the Sapura consortium, and an additional US$2.5 billion for pipelay vessels, rigid risers, and flowlines contracts to Subsea 7, were the driving forces behind the surge in the overall oil and gas contracts value.”

Operation and Maintenance (O&M) scope reported 681 contracts, accounting for 49% of the total contracts in Q2 2024, followed by procurement with 400 contracts representing a 29% share. Contracts with multiple scopes, such as construction, design and engineering, installation, O&M, and procurement, accounted for 9% of the contracts. 

Of the biggest contracts signed in Africa during this period, Saipem was signed in by TotalEnergies to cover SURF, FPSO and O&M scopes. 

Deals in Middle East and Africa

The other notable contracts include Samsung Engineering, GS Engineering & Construction, and Nesma & Partners’ $7.7 billion EPC contract from Saudi Aramco for Fadhili Gas plant expansion from 2.5 to up to 4 billion standard cubic feet per day (bscfd) in Saudi Arabia; Tecnimont-led consortium’s US$2.3bn EPC contract from Sonatrach for three gas boosting stations with 20 turbo-compressor trains in Algeria; and Saipem’s US$850mn rigid pipelines, flexible flowlines, jumpers, and umbilicals work for Azule Energy’s Ndungu field development in Angola. 

In Senegal, a subsea inspection, maintenance, and repair (IMR) services framework agreement for the Sangomar offshore field was signed between Woodside Energy and DeepOcean as recently as in June. 

Area 2 lies within the emerging South Africa and Namibia (SANAM) super-basin. (Image source: Impact Oil & Gas)

Impact Africa Ltd by Impact Oil & Gas Limited has entered into an agreement with Silver Wave Energy Pte Ltd to acquire its entire interest (10%) in Area 2, offshore South Africa

Impact currently owns a 90% participating interest and operatorship in Area 2, acquired from Silver Wave Energy in 2020. Following completion of this transaction, the company will own 100% of Area 2. 

Last month, Africa Energy Corporation announced move for a complete ownership of Block 11B/12B offshore the Republic of South Africa, as TotalEnergies EP South Africa BV and QatarEnergy International E&P LLC called quits from the region. 

Area 2 sits outboard of, and compliments, Impact’s Transkei & Algoa blocks, off the east coast of South Africa. Together, the blocks extend the entire length and breadth of the deepwater part of the east coast margin, covering a combined area of approximately 125,000 sq km across a very exciting frontier exploration area, with plays extending across both blocks.

Closing of the transaction is subject to customary conditions, including the approval of the Government of South Africa.

High-calibre exploration block

Area 2 lies within the emerging South Africa and Namibia (SANAM) super-basin, which stretches from northernmost Namibia to the Durban Basin of eastern South Africa. The Block shares the same prolific petroleum play as is currently being successfully explored in the Orange Basin of Namibia, and further proven by the Brulpadda and Luiperd discoveries in South Africa’s Outeniqua Basin. Impact believes that all of these areas share common world-class Cretaceous source rocks and similar giant stratigraphic traps. It is expecting higher quality Cretaceous reservoir sands in Area 2 than those currently explored in the SANAM super-basin.

Siraj Ahmed, CEO of Impact Oil & Gas, said, “We are pleased to have concluded this agreement with Silver Wave Energy and thank the Silver Wave team for their collaboration over the past four years. As the holder of 100% of this high-calibre exploration block, we are particularly excited with the opportunity for this area to contain a very similar play to that which has brought Impact so much success in the Namibian Orange Basin.”

Following completion of this transaction, Impact will hold 100% participating interest and operatorship in Area 2. In the adjacent Transkei & Algoa blocks Impact holds a 45% participating interest and BG International Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc, holds a 55% participating interest and Operatorship. 

The Petroleum Agency of South Africa (PASA) has been particularly active since 2022 for the promotion and optimal development of on- and offshore oil and gas resources on behalf of the government, seeking geophysical contractors to acquire fresh seismic data in the Orange, Bredasdorp, Durban and Karoo basins.

DeepSea Mira contract extended. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Northern Ocean Ltd has announced an extension of the contract with a subsidiary of TotalEnergies SE for continued work in Africa using the Deepsea Mira

The firm term of the contract is extended from October 2024 for one well and provides one additional well option. The extension from October provides firm revenue backlog of approximately US$24.3-34.2mn with the option to extend for an additional well potentially adding a further backlog of approximately US$26.9-36.9mn.

Collaboration in petroleum, natural gas and infrastructure were explored. (Image source: Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources)

Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi received Dimitrios Copelouzos, chairman of the Greek Copelouzos Group, and Ioannis Karydas, CEO of the Group for Renewable Energy, Energy Storage and Interconnection

Areas of potential collaborations and investment opportunities available in the petroleum sector, natural gas and infrastructure were explored.
Badawi confirmed that Egypt's oil sector is conducting intensive research to increase exploration programmes. The plan is to achieve new discoveries that can potentially lead to increased production. The gfovernment is also working towards meeting local demand to relieve pressure on the import bill.
Badawi emphasised Egypt's strong infrastructure that has the potential to make it a regional energy centre. He confirmed that work is underway to explore investment opportunities in the hydrocarbons sector to serve the diversification of energy resources. The country is ready to initiate a multi-phase green hydrogen project that involves bp and Masdar, among others. 

Strong natural gas infrastructure

Copelouzos confirmed that Egypt is able to create a bright future in the field of natural gas by taking advantage of the strong infrastructure it has, especially the gas machine factories. This established the Group's interests to participate in any new tenders that Egypt might launch in the near future. He also referred to the electrical interconnection project between Egypt and the European Union among the most significant ones currently being implemented in Europe.
The meeting was also attended by Yas Mohamed, head of the Egyptian Natural Gas Company, and Moataz Atef, assistant head of Egas for the technical office, Special Projects and Operational Safety. 

In April, the Ministy of Petroleum and Mineral Resources signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Equador, which was keen on exploring the North African country's oil and gas resources.