Oil and gas companies, Tullow Oil and BW Energy which have active operations in Gabon, have said there have been no disruptions to their oil production activities following the August 30 coup which occurred in Gabon, after the military took overpower from Ali Bongo, whose family has been in a “democratic” government for the last four decades.
This is according to a report from S&P Global Commodity Insights. In the report, it was stated that some oil majors have confirmed that production is still ongoing undisrupted in the country.
S&P wrote that Knut Sæthre, the CFO of BW Energy, whose Gabon assets are currently producing 27,500 barrels per day said the company is monitoring the situation, however, all offshore operations are continuing as normal.
Meanwhile, Tullow Oil, which produced 14,900 barrels per day in Gabon in 2022 also told S&P that its operations are “currently unaffected by the ongoing coup and production continues as normal.
- S&P also reported that Maurel & Prom, which is purchasing 40,700 barrels per day of Assala Energy in Gabon from private equity fund, Carlyle Group, said the “current situation does not affect our sites of activity where operations are taking place normally, without impact on production.”
The African Energy Chamber context
On Wednesday, August 30, the African Energy Chamber (AEC) released a statement saying that active oil and gas companies in Gabon have stated that their operations have not been impacted and that the safety and security of workers is of uttermost priority.
The Chamber wrote:
- “These include TotalEnergies, who is prioritizing the safety of employees and operations; Tullow and Perenco, both of which are closely monitoring the situation; Maurel & Prom, stating that all employees are safe; BW Energy, stating that all offshore operations have continued as normal, and many more. However, as tensions mount, concerns are rising that oil and gas activities could be halted.”
Manganese production halted at Eramet
According to S&P, French miner Eramet, which has large manganese operations in Gabon, said it had halted operations. Meanwhile, risk management firm Ambrey told S&P on August 30, that port operations at Gabon’s capital city, Libreville had stopped.
Military unlikely to disrupt business
S&P also reported that Maja Bovcon, senior Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft projected that it is unlikely that the military in Gabon will want to disrupt business environment. S&P quoted Bovcon:
- “The military will likely refrain from any rapid changes in the business environment in the short run to reassure investors. However, as other coup-hit countries indicate, greater interference in the economy is likely over the longer run, from reviewing to renegotiating contracts to demanding greater stakes in projects.
- “Whoever runs the country will have to grapple with Gabon’s overreliance on declining oil production and diversify its economy.”
It is important to note that Gabon produced 211,000 barrels per day of oil in July 2023, according to data from OPEC’s monthly oil market report. Gabon’s crude oil production averaged 197,000 barrels per day between April 2016 and July 2023.
The data reached an all-time high of 239,000 barrels per day in May 2016 and a record low of 170,000 barrels per day in November 2018, according to data from CEIC.
What you should know
According to S&P, Gabon’s largest producers include Anglo-French independent Perenco, French company Maurel & Prom and Norway’s BW Energy — which is halfway through a six-well drilling campaign as well as other majors.
