Adnan Adams Mohammed
The Petroleum Commission of Ghana is ready to announce about five new oil blocks offshore through direct negotiation and farm-in in the next couple of weeks.
‘Hopes are that by end of first 2023, at least two of the blocks could have been awarded’, the Chief Executive Officer of the Commission has said in an interview.
The blocks available for direct negotiation are the; Offshore Cape Three Points South, Shallow Water Cape Three Points and South West Saltpond. Those available for Farm-in are; Expanded Shallow Water Tano (Operated by Base Energy Ghana) and Deep Water Cape Three Points (Operated by Goil Offshore Ghana).
“The processes for the public offering for the blocks have already begun. It is only left with the official public announcement and publication in the media to take place hopefully by next week”, Egbert Faibille Jnr (Esq), Petroleum Commission CEO noted in an interview at the ongoing Africa Oil Week Summit in Cape Town, South Africa.
The Energy Minister in the past two weeks led delegation to meet investors (international oil companies) in Houston and Aberden to market the blocks.
“We have received many interest as at now. What we are to do now is to send a report to the minister for direction on which delegation should be meeting the various companies for further negotiations”, Mr Faibille noted.
“My indications are that latest by Q1 2023, one or two of them might be awarded. But, we are very hopeful all the blocks will be awarded from what I have seen as the interest of the IOCs.”
Ghana recently concluded on a licensing rounds which awarded a number of its oil blocks to companies for exploration, development and production. However, there were a number of blocks that are still to be awarded, whiles some of the blocks awarded still have rings around for farm-in.
