Namibia is reigniting hope around oil exploration
Fresh oil find stokes Namibian interest
The southern African nation continues to deliver exploration success
Namibia is starting to deliver on its immense promise and reigniting hope around oil exploration. The latest find has been made by joint venture partners Shell, state-owned QatarEnergy and Namibian NOC Namcor, which have discovered light oil at their Jonker-1X exploration well. Jonker is located in deep water, around 270km off the coast in blocks 2913A and 2914B of the Orange basin’s PEL39 licence area. Drilling started in December and ended in early March. PEL39 is the same block in which the Shell-led JV also made the Graff discovery, which helped spark the current wave of interest in Namibian prospects. “The encouraging results from the well are a geological testimony of the significant
Also in this section
2 April 2026
Alongside a rapid continued build-out of renewables, China’s latest five-year plan stresses the value of domestic hydrocarbon production for energy security and calls for increased Russian gas imports
2 April 2026
The government is taking important steps to revive domestic production, lift investment and benefit from the geopolitical crisis even if more needs to be done in the longer term
1 April 2026
Golden Pass’s startup offers QatarEnergy a timely boost but may also force a difficult choice between honouring disrupted contracts and capitalising on soaring spot LNG prices
1 April 2026
It is not a case of if or when, but the length and magnitude of economic damage from elevated oil prices
