The agreement signed last week represents a strategic entry by the Canadian company into Angola and complements the operations that Reconnaissance Energy Africa (ReconAfrica) has underway in the Okavango region, in the Kalahari Desert, where it holds oil exploration licenses in Botswana and Namibia, where it already explores 6.3 million acres.
ReconAfrica will have an 80 percent stake in the area covered by the memorandum of understanding, in the onshore Etosha-Okavango basin, located in southwest Angola, and Sonangol will have a 20 percent stake, with the Canadian company being granted exclusive rights for a period of 24 months.
The memorandum establishes the terms for carrying out geological studies, 2D seismic surveys, geochemical analyses and sample collection, operations that will be fully funded by the Canadian company, with the development plan divided into two phases, the first of technical activities and data collection and the second of in-depth analyses, according to the ANPG website.
The inland basins of Angola represent an area of approximately 520 thousand square kilometres, with the Etosha-Okavango Basin accounting for around 300 thousand square kilometres.
The Etosha-Okavango Basin includes the provinces of Cunene, Cuando, Cubango, Moxico and Moxico Leste and part of a protected area.
According to the president of the ANPG, Paulino Jerónimo, the objective is to leverage local development through the oil industry.
"We will continue to seek other investors. We will do our internal work to promote investment and all exploration activities will be conducted with full respect for national and international environmental standards, ensuring the preservation of ecosystems," he said.
ReconAfrica's CEO, Brian Reinsbourough, said that regional geological models indicate that the Damara Fold Belt (Damara rock formation in northern Namibia), known for hosting some of the world's largest hydrocarbon fields, extends into Angola and highlighted the company's experience in onshore (oil operations in onshore fields).
