South Africa's offshore open for business
Eager to emulate its neighbours' success, the country is striving to reinvigorate interest in its deepwater potential
Efforts to get large-scale offshore exploration moving in South Africa have largely proved fruitless in recent years, but fresh interest has emerged, albeit against the background of an uncertain regulatory environment. Encouragement has come from Statoil's decision to beef up its existing position in the country—having entered its upstream in 2015. In September, the Norwegian firm announced it was farming in to ExxonMobil's deepwater acreage, acquiring a 35% interest in Exploration Right 12/3/252 Transkei-Algoa, off South Africa's southeast coast. ExxonMobil, with a 40% stake, remains operator, while Impact Africa holds 25%. The licence covers some 45,000 sq km in water depths up to 3,000 m
Also in this section
8 December 2025
The Caribbean country’s role in the global oil market is significantly diminished, but disruptions caused by outright conflict would still have implications for US Gulf Coast refineries
5 December 2025
Mistaken assumptions around an oil bull run that never happened are a warning over the talk of a supply glut
4 December 2025
Time is running out for Lukoil and Rosneft to divest international assets that will be mostly rendered useless to them when the US sanctions deadline arrives in mid-December
3 December 2025
Aramco’s pursuit of $30b in US gas partnerships marks a strategic pivot. The US gains capital and certainty; Saudi Arabia gains access, flexibility and a new export future
