Read the Digital Magazine

Aiming to acquire an operated interest onshore Kwanza basin in Angola, Afentra plc has initialled a risk service contract (RSC) for Block KON4

The initialling marks a significant step forward to securing Block KON4. Under the terms of the proposed KON4 RSC, Afentra will be Operator with a 35% equity interest. The Block offers both short cycle, low-cost production opportunities linked to field redevelopment alongside low-cost near-term exploration potential similar to that being pursued in KON15 and KON19. The contract will now progress through the formal governmental approval process, and the company will provide a further update to the market once the agreement has been fully executed and signed.

Paul McDade, Chief Executive Officer of Afentra plc, said, "The initialling of the KON4 RSC is a significant step in our continued strategy to build a material position in onshore Kwanza basin in Angola. While this marks the beginning of the formal approval process, we are already working closely with our partners in the contractor group to prepare for an efficient review of the block's existing oil fields and the potential for early development opportunities. In addition, we will be bringing our significant experience in the use of eFTG data, which is currently being acquired across the basin, to understand the full exploration potential of KON4 as well as our other licenses KON15 and KON19.

"The addition of the KON4 license to our existing onshore licenses will represent a compelling opportunity to work with local Angolan companies to both revitalise historic oil fields with modern production and development techniques as well as understand the full exploration potential of this underexploited basin where exploration activities stopped over 40 years ago."

Covering 1,387 sq km, Block KON4 has seen the discovery of 11 oil and two gas fields, producing more than 90 mmboe to date. The block features the Quenguela Norte field - the largest onshore discovery to date - estimated to hold over 200 mmbbls of discovered oil in place. The field achieved peak production of 12,000 bopd, with 42 mmbbls recovered before it was eventually shut-in and abandoned in 1999. This represents an opportunity to unlock significant value through the reactivation of legacy oil fields, supported by modern technology and re-development techniques that have advanced considerably since the fields were last in production decades ago. In addition, the Block's proximity to the Luanda refinery and the existing road infrastructure could allow early production and export to the refinery.

KON4 also provides low-cost, near-field exploration opportunities that further enhance Afentra's footprint and strategic optionality in the onshore Kwanza basin. The three blocks together offer a complementary portfolio with exposure to a diverse range of play types - across both post-salt and pre-salt petroleum systems - as well as opportunities to appraise and re-develop multiple discovered but abandoned oil fields.

DUG has released the latest results from its elastic multi-parameter full waveform inversion (MP-FWI) imaging technology which it launched in 2022, since when more than 70 successful projects have been completed worldwide

DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging is a unique approach to seismic processing and imaging which is not only a complete replacement for the traditional processing and imaging workflows, it also replaces the subsequent inversion workflow for elastic rock properties.

With the traditional processing workflow, projects can take many months to years to complete. It involves the testing and application of dozens of steps such as deghosting, designature, demultiple and regularisation, all designed to overcome the limitations of conventional imaging. These workflows are complex, subjective, and very time-consuming and they rely on many assumptions and simplifications. All of these issues impact the output data quality. The resulting, primary-only data then undergoes a similarly complex model-building workflow to derive an estimate of the subsurface velocity, which is used for depth imaging. Post-migration processing is performed before the pre-stack reflectivity undergoes another workflow to derive rock properties that feed into interpretation, also relying on simplifications of the actual physics.

As well as three-component reflectivity and velocity, DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging enables the estimation of fundamental rock properties like P-impedance, density and Vp/Vs from field data, without the need for a secondary amplitude variation with angle (AVA) inversion step. DUG Elastic MP-FWI Imaging simultaneously resolves not only subsurface structural features but also quantitative rock property information while avoiding the need for extensive data pre-processing and (post-imaging) AVA-inversion workflows.

“Elastic MP-FWI Imaging accounts for both compressional and shear waves, handling variations in seismic wave dynamics as a function of incidence angle, including in the presence of high impedance contrasts and onshore near-surface geological complexity,” said Tom Rayment, DUG chief geophysicist. “Multiples and converted waves are now treated as valuable additional signal, increasing sampling, resolution and constraining the inverted parameters.”

DUG managing director, Dr Matthew Lamont, added, “We have invested over a decade of R&D to realise this opportunity. Our new Elastic MP-FWI Imaging technology is the product of a multi-year, significant and ongoing R&D effort, which has seen the continuous integration of complete-physics FWI imaging including viscoelasticity, anisotropy and multi-parameter updates. When using the full wavefield for simultaneous velocity model building, rock property inversion and true-amplitude imaging, a multi-parameter solution is a necessity.”

“The fact that DUG MP-FWI Imaging is delivering material imaging uplifts using field-data input is very powerful, but to couple this with high-resolution elastic rock property outputs for quantitative interpretation is even more exciting, providing immediate opportunities for new surveys and maximising the value of legacy datasets,” said Martin Stupel, geophysical manager, Geophysical Pursuit Inc.

Energy technology company, SLB has launched Sequestri carbon storage solutions for the most effective project delivery 

Since long-term carbon storage demands a calculated approach, the new portfolio gives customised hardware and digital workflows for improved decision-making across the full carbon storage value chain, from site selection and planning to development, operations and monitoring.

“Advanced technology solutions have a crucial role to play in shifting the economics and safeguarding the integrity of carbon storage projects,” said Katherine Rojas, SLB’s senior vice president of Industrial Decarbonisation. “The Sequestri portfolio offers a comprehensive suite of solutions that provide the precision, reliability and efficiency needed to advance carbon storage projects at every stage of their lifecycle — driving meaningful progress toward industrial decarbonisation at scale.”

The Sequestri portfolio is anchored by a network of interconnected digital technologies and services for carbon storage that provide a robust foundation for analysis and prediction. These end-to-end digital technologies harness more than 25 years of carbon capture and storage (CCS) project experience to help developers screen, rank, design, model, simulate and analyse every phase of the project lifecycle. The portfolio also includes a range of technologies which have been specifically engineered and qualified for carbon storage applications, from subsurface safety valves and measurement tools to cementing systems, including SLB’s EverCRETE CO₂-resistant cement system.

The Sequestri portfolio of carbon storage solutions, together with the SLB Capturi standard, modular carbon capture solutions, provide emitters and project developers with a full suite of complementary CCS solutions to enable decarbonisation at scale from point of capture to permanent carbon storage.

The FLNG Gimi by Golar LNG Limited has reached commercial operations date (COD) for the 20-year lease and operate agreement with bp for the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) project offshore Mauritania and Senegal

This marks a significant milestone for the project partners, as LNG production volumes have successfully been ramped up to a level equivalent to the annual contracted volumes of approximately 2.4 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), or around 90% of nameplate capacity of 2.7mtpa.

The achievement of COD follows first LNG in February and the first LNG cargo in April. The second and third LNG cargo were exported in May and early June respectively and a fourth cargo is currently loading. The fifth cargo is expected at the start of the third quarter. With this expected cargo timing, Kosmos Energy forecasts 3.5 gross cargos in the second quarter.

Achieving COD and the recent ramp up in cargo lifting activity highlights continued strong cooperation between the project partners and Golar. 

As part of production optimisation strategy, the Republic of Congo is advancing investments on infrastructure development

With aims to expand the container terminal at the Port of Pointe Noire, a €230mn in financing has been generated to onboard freight forwarding service Africa Global Logistics (AGL) for the project.

The new 750-meter quay – scheduled for completion by 2027 – will double the terminal’s capacity to 2.3 million containers annually and support the country’s growing oil and LNG exports.
The Pointe Noire project is being executed by AGL’s subsidiary Congo Terminal in collaboration with engineering firm China Road and Bridge Corporation. Backed by both international and Congolese banks, the €400mn platform will include 26 hectares of quayside, a dredged 17-meter-deep basin, and the installation of 16 gantries. It forms a key part of Congo’s strategy to boost hydrocarbon production to 500,000 barrels of oil per day and LNG output to 3 million tons per annum within five years.

In Angola, AGL also launched operations at its Lobito Terminal in March last year. The terminal – Angola’s second-largest port hub – handles over one million tons of bulk cargo and more than 100,000 20-ft equivalent unit containers annually, with 730 employees operating deepwater berths and modern equipment. The project comes at a pivotal time for Angola, which is preparing to bring several major energy developments online between 2025 and 2028. These include the Cabinda Oil Refinery in 2025, the Agogo Integrated West Hub development in late-2025, the Quiluma and Maboqueiro gas fields in 2026 and the Kaminho Deepwater Development in 2028.

Meanwhile, in Ivory Coast, AGL is playing a vital role in Phase 2 of the Baleine offshore development - West Africa’s first net-zero emissions project. In partnership with engineering firm Saipem, AGL began manufacturing critical subsea structures for the Baleine field in April 2024 at its Carena shipyard in Abidjan. The works include anchoring systems and underwater fixtures totaling over 200 tons, to be deployed in ultra-deep waters. AGL has mobilized 100 skilled local workers – including certified welders, painters and crane operators – reinforcing its commitment to local content, capacity building and sustainable energy infrastructure in Ivory Coast’s rapidly growing oil and gas sector.

AGL’s recent activities in Africa align with its broader vision to support the continent’s energy infrastructure. In addition to the Republic of Congo, Angola and Ivory Coast, the company is currently modernising the Walvis Bay terminal in Namibia while playing a key role in major energy logistics across Mauritania, Senegal and Mozambique. 

As Africa is zooming in on brownfield sites for maximum oil recovery, artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies are fuelling the industry's optimisation goals

Redifining operational efficiency by extending field life and maximising output, AI is set to move the oil and gas industry at a US$6.4bn market value by 2030.

As major operators increasingly adopt AI, global oilfield technology companies like Baker Hughes, Halliburton or SLB have opened bases in Africa. SLB's technology is backing several billion-dollar oil projects in Angola, and has introduced the Africa Performance Centre in Luanda this year. It has a strong presence in other regions of Africa as well.

Repsol has several developments underway in Libya, Algeria and Morocco and strives to bolster production across these markets. 

Enhanced oil recovery is currently witnessing a disruption as AI has unlocked access to large datasets which is unimaginable with traditional systems. This makes a huge difference for operators in taking the right decisions. With deep geological and production data in hand, reservoir management and pattern identification become much simpler. 

AI is now way past the experimental stage, and is being adopted on a policy level as well. Many African countries are streamlining policy to support EOR at legacy assets. Angola, for example, implemented its Incremental Production Initiative in 2024 which offers tax incentives to encourage reinvestments in mature oilfields. Energy major ExxonMobil made the first discovery – the Likembe-01 well - as part of the initiative in 2024, demonstrating the role policy plays in unlocking incremental resources. The African Union Commission also declared AI as a strategic priority for the continent in May 2025, citing the role machine-learning plays in transforming the continent’s development trajectory. 

These topics will drive conversations at the African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies 2025 that will be taking place from 29 September 29 to 3 October in Cape Town.