The Gabonese Directorate-General of Hydrocarbons, and Norwegian seismic acquisition company, PGS, have expanded the Gabon MegaSurvey coverage by offering over 65,000 square kilometers of 3D seismic, and over 21,000 kilometers of 2D seismic data across the 35 blocks.
The seismic data now being offered across the 35 blocks is a boost that will attract more investors to the ongoing 12th Offshore Licensing Round, and will provide more opportunities for the integration of new data into the evaluations of open blocks.
Even with the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic to several oil-producing countries on the continent, Gabon continues to show its willingness to attract more investors to “an already successful” 12th Offshore Licensing Round. The round was launched in November 2018 and scheduled to close on April 30th, 2020, but the deadline has been extended to help cushion the effect of the pandemic on businesses within the country and beyond.
In a statement by PGS, “Value-added composite logs used in conjunction with the regional seismic dataset will help the assessment of prospectively and play evaluation.” It is reported that accurate data is currently available for 167 wells in the area covered by the MegaSurvey.
Commenting on the Offshore Licensing Round, the African Energy Chamber President for the CEMAC, Leonco Amada Nze, said, “The Chamber notes the country’s continued commitment to offer an enabling business environment for investors, which echoes several recommendations issued earlier this year as part of our Africa’s Energy Commonsense agenda. We see the ongoing Licensing Round in Gabon as a pillar of future investments in the whole region and a booster to the sector’s recovery.”
Many oil explorers are currently in Gabon, including Total, the French giant whose presence seems to be in most African countries at the moment, Perenco, VAALCO Energy, and a host of others. A new Hydrocarbons code, which was implemented in July last year, offers investors fiscal incentives and a lucrative business environment for upstream related activities in oil and gas.
