Sintana Energy in US$35m deal on PEL 87 in Orange River Basin

 


Woodside Energy wants to acquire a 56% participating interest in petroleum licence 87 in Block 2713 in the Orange River Basin in Namibia from Sintana Energy.

Custos Investments (Pty) Ltd, in which Sintana has an indirect minority interest, will retain the other 15% interest and benefits from this carrier and other elements of related farmout and joint operating agreements. Sintana owns an indirect minority interest in Custos.

Prospective exploration licence 87 that covers 10,970 square kilometres, hosts the large Saturn turbidite complex on-trend with the recent major oil discoveries made in the Orange Basin, including Total's Venus-1 discovery and Shell's Graff-1 and La Rona-1 and recent Jonker-1 discoveries have proven a working light oil system offshore Namibia. 

Businessman Knowledge Katti is the Sintana Energy and Custos chairperson. Sintana is involved in petroleum and natural gas exploration and development activities in Colombia's Magdalena Basin and five large onshore and offshore petroleum exploration licenses in Namibia.

The agreement, announced on March 2, entails that Woodside Energy, owned by Woodside Energy Group, will pay the full cost of a 3D seismic survey covering about 5 000 square metres for about US$35m.

The seismic survey is expected to start in March 2023, with fast-track processed results anticipated in late June.

After delivering the seismic survey data, Woodside has about 180 days to exercise the option to acquire the 56% that would allow it to enter into a farmout agreement and carry the existing joint venture partners during the drilling of the first exploration well to be drilled on the licence area after the completion of the seismic survey.

Katti said the transaction strengthens the positioning of both Custos and Sintana in Namibia, specifically in an area that has emerged as the exploration hot spot in recent years after the recent discoveries by Total Energies and Shell.

"We are excited to make further progress with Woodside on Block 2713. The block has been previously mapped with good quality technical data, and the new survey will enable our co-venture partners and us to mature these exciting prospects for drilling," Katti said.

Sintana president Robert Bose confirmed further progress on attracting capital and world-class partners to their portfolio of assets in the Orange Basin. 

Bose said the success in executing Sintana's strategy speaks to the quality of the portfolio and the continuing emergence of the Orange Basin as the world's next great hydrocarbon province.

"We expect significant additional activity on our blocks and those around us over the next 12 to 18 months that will further demonstrate our portfolio's scale, scope and potential," Bose said.

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