Diamantino Pedro Azevedo said that the province, on the south coast of the country, is essentially known for having a dynamic fishing industry that is vitally important for its economy and the livelihood of its populations.
The minister acknowledged that the emergence of oil activity in that province "has raised some concerns regarding the cohabitation between fishing and oil activities", and assured that this industry operates with the most modern exploration and production technologies available on the market.
Therefore, these operations have "high levels of efficiency and safety, which ensure that adverse impacts on the environment are considerably minimized", he assured.
Speaking this Monday at the opening of a workshop on "Sustainable Exploration of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas in the province of Namibe", the person responsible considered it crucial to make investments in mature oil fields, which absorb 80 percent of national production, aiming to the replacement of produced reserves and the mitigation of the decline in production.
For Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, in case of success in exploration activities, the Namibe Basin will play an important role in replenishing reserves and stopping the decline in production.
"Recognizing that the oil sector is capital intensive and requires a high level of demand, especially when it comes to activities carried out in deep and ultra-deep waters, as is the case with the blocks in the Namibe Basin, the executive has created the necessary conditions for a good business environment for investors," he said.
The oil potential of the Namibe Basin needs to be assessed and is the only one that has not yet been tested by drilling, he said.
The minister recalled that, within the scope of the Petroleum Concession Allocation Strategy 2019-2025, nine blocks in the Namibe Basin were tendered in 2019, of which three were awarded, namely Block 27 operated by Sonangol, Block 28 operated by Azule Energy and Block 29 operated by Total Energies.
In 2020, the National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency, through direct negotiation, signed three risk-bearing service contracts with ExxonMobil for Blocks 30, 44 and 45, he highlighted.
"Currently, geology and geophysics studies are underway in the blocks mentioned above and the first research well is expected to be drilled in Block 30 in 2024, the results of which will allow us to have a deeper understanding of the oil potential of the Namibe Basin," he said.
According to Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, if the well that will be drilled next year proves to be commercial, the Namibe Basin will be more attractive, and should attract more investments for the exploration and production of hydrocarbons.
