The Executive Director of Sahara Group, Wale Ajibade, has disclosed that there are opportunities to be exploited in Angola’s oil and gas industry as the country’s transformative policies are luring international private firms.
Ajibade said with the support of the Angolan government, there are enormous opportunities for both international and local private capital. His statement was encouraged by the restructuring of Angola’s oil and gas sector to better accommodate foreign investors in the Southern African country.
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He made this statement during a visit by the country’s trade delegation. He told the Angolan delegation that the restructuring would create a partnership between International oil firms, international traders, and international banks which include African companies and Angolan companies.
According to Ajibade, such partnership would enable the exchange of needed knowledge to drive the growth of Angola’s local industry, accelerate funding, as well as increase the number of private players in the country’s downstream market.
Angola is the second-largest oil-producing country in sub-Saharan Africa and a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) with an output of approximately 1.55 million barrels of oil per day (bpd). The nation also holds nine billion barrels of proven oil reserves and 11 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves, which represent great potential for further economic development and significant business opportunities.
While commending the transformative policies of Angola’s President, João Lourenço, Ajibade said, “These opportunities can be exploited with the deployment of international and local private capital in partnership with the Angolan government. With our pedigree, proven expertise and capacity in Africa’s oil and gas sector, Sahara Group is happy to work with Angola in a bid to optimise the growth and development of the sector in Angola.
“With the right investments in the necessary infrastructure such as storage and logistics, Angola can become the Rotterdam of Africa.”
According to him, there are several investors interested in the country’s exploration and production, as well as the rest of the value chain, which includes the downstream sector, but to adequately harness the opportunities in Angola’s oil and gas, the country’s government will have to make import-export facilities, pipelines and storage a high priority and invest in them significantly.
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