Duo in talks to boost stake in two blocks offshore Angola

UK-headquartered and AIM-listed upstream oil and gas company Afentra has acknowledged the growing media speculating over its alleged attempt to up its stake in two Angolan offshore blocks by confirming its participation in discussions, together with one of its joint venture (JV) partners, to buy the stake of another JV partner.

In response to recent media speculation, Afentra has disclosed its engagement in discussions, alongside another of its joint venture partners, to acquire the interests in blocks 3/05 (10%) and 3/05A (13.5%) held by Etu Energias.

“There can be no certainty that the transaction to acquire the Etu Interests will proceed. Should any such acquisition proceed, Afentra would utilise existing cash resources to fund the transaction and the transaction would be subject to a number of customary closing conditions, including regulatory and government approvals,” highlighted the UK-based firm focused on acquiring production and development assets in Africa.

In the meantime, Afentra claims that it continues to work with the Block 3/05 and Block 3/05A operator, Sonangol, and its joint venture partners on an ongoing redevelopment plan for the assets, delivering both increased production and reserves.

“We are pleased with the collaborative progress being made alongside Sonangol as operator and remain focused on supporting the joint efforts to unlock further value from these assets,” emphasized the AIM-listed player, which entered Angola in May 2023.

This comes after Afentra revealed that total net 2P working interest reserves for Block 3/05 stand at 34.2 million barrels of oil (mmbo) as of December 2024. Given a reserve replacement ratio of 140% over 18 months, contingent resources increased, leading to net working interest 2C resources of 13.8 mmbo (gross 46 mmbo).

Therefore, the company estimates Block 3/05A net 2C resources at 7.1 mmbo (gross 33 mmbo). Block 3/05 encompasses eight mature producing fields discovered by Elf Petroleum, part of TotalEnergies, in the early 1980s in the Lower Congo Basin, and produces hydrocarbons from around 40 production wells with nine active water injectors.

This block has 17 wellhead and support platforms and four processing platforms, with oil exported via the FSO Palanca. The National Agency for Oil, Gas, and Biofuels (ANPG) claims that Angola has 30 investment opportunities in the oil sector, covering 11 blocks in permanent offers, six onshore blocks, four opportunities in marginal fields with existing discoveries, and nine blocks for the 2025 bidding round.