Namibia’s upstream poised for growth

Discovery in the Orange basin confirms Namibia’s hydrocarbon potential, says the country’s NOC

Namibia’s frontier upstream sector continues to gather pace, following the discovery of oil in the offshore Orange basin. A joint venture comprising operator Shell (45pc), state firm QatarEnergy (45pc) and Namibia’s state-owned Namcor (10pc) discovered oil at the Graff-1 well in their PEL-39 licence area, “establishing the presence of a working petroleum system with light oil”, says QatarEnergy, adding they were “encouraged by the results”. Further exploration activity will follow to determine the size and recoverability of the reserves. “We hope that this discovery puts to rest doubts about the hydrocarbon potential of Namibia,” says Namcor managing director Immanuel Mulunga. Consultancy Fi