Minister of Mines and Energy Tom Alweendo (Namibia energy ministry)
Namibian energy minister wants gas master plan
African nation eyes roadmap for associated gas, complicating IOCs’ oil exploration activities
Namibia wants to discuss a gas master plan with IOCs drilling oil exploration and appraisal wells that have struck substantial associated gas volumes as the African country seeks to reach first crude production before 2030, Minister of Mines and Energy Tom Alweendo said in an interview with Petroleum Economist in Abu Dhabi. Ever since discoveries of light oil by TotalEnergies and Shell in Namibia’s Orange Basin made headlines in 2022, IOCs drilling wells offshore have had to grapple with difficulties extracting oil due to significant associated gas volumes at depths that can exceed 3,000 metres. In January, Shell revealed it had taken a $400m write-off on discovered resources deemed “commerc
Also in this section
11 July 2025
Equinor and its partners at Norway’s largest oilfield have pulled the trigger on a fresh $1.3b investment that will maintain high output for longer
11 July 2025
Reassessment of the country’s export-facing gas policy coincides with worsening domestic market backdrop
10 July 2025
Without sanctions relief, there is little reason to believe the latest potential attempt at exports from the Russian liquefaction project will be more successful than the one last summer
9 July 2025
Efforts to restructure and boost investment appear to be working, but doubts remain about the plan to almost double crude production by 2030
