Congo: a new lease of life with the first onshore oil deposit in Oyo?
More and more oil for the Congo. Two oil companies presented on Saturday 10 August in Oyo, department of the Cuvette in northern Congo, the characteristics of the first onshore oil deposit that can almost quadruple the country’s production. This was a major discovery that Denis Sassou-Nguesso, himself a native of this city, did not fail to point out. It should be noted that this region was still untapped, in terms of oil reserves. The news came a week before the celebration of the 59th anniversary of the independence of the Congo. With a population of 4.5 million, Congo disputes with Gabon as the fourth largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa with a production of
The Basin Delta deposit, which covers an area of 9,392 square metres, has four wells, the first of which has been drilled since March, according to the African Petroleum Research and Distribution Company (SARPD-oil) and PEPA in charge of its operation. Prospecting studies indicate that the deposit could produce up to one billion cubic metres of hydrocarbons, including 359 million barrels of oil, or 983,000 barrels per day, said Mohamed Rahmani, marketing director of SARPD-OIL. “The share of the Congolese State [which granted the permit in 2006, Ndlr] will be 35%,” in connection with a production sharing agreement, he said. We are not yet in the production phase, but rather in the last perforation phase. And, in the debris that rises to the surface, we found oil, that is, oil,” explained Albert Boukoulou Matondo, senior drilling engineer of the discovered deposit. “I can confirm that there were hydrocarbon-impregnated reservoir areas. This is a pure exploration well,” he added.
983,000 barrels per day
These two firms are headed by Claude Wilfrid Etoka, a Congolese businessman, who is very close to President Denis Sassou-Nguesso, both from the Cuvette, the region where the deposit is located. President Denis Sassou-Nguesso welcomed the drilling operation of the deposit in a video shown at the presentation ceremony of the Delta de la Cuvette, marked by the presence of some members of the government. “This is welcome news for all of us, as it is the result of a long process that began in the 1980s,” he said. “Strengthening Congo’s energy independence is the role that the Basin Delta must play,” said Claude Wilfrid Etoka.
Source: By Le Point Afrique
