The United States is reconsidering the strictest aspects of a G7-imposed ban on Russian diamonds, following resistance from African countries, Indian gem polishers, and New York jewelers, according to seven sources cited by Reuters. The sanctions package, agreed upon in December and including an EU-wide ban, represents a major shift in the diamond industry. Two sources familiar with the negotiations stated that the U.S. has largely disengaged from G7 working groups on stringent controls, with
French oil giant TotalEnergies has committed $600 million to bolster its operations in the Republic of Congo, continuing to bypass investment in Nigeria. This decision, announced by TotalEnergies’ CEO Patrick Pouyanne during a visit to Kenya, follows the company’s earlier choice to allocate $6 billion to Angola instead of Nigeria, citing policy inconsistencies and other challenges in the West African country. The $600 million investment will be directed towards exploration and production activities in Congo’s
Nafusa Oil Operations BV has announced that the National Oil Corporation (NOC) has acquired its foreign partner’s share in the development of the North Hamada field. T his acquisition enables the resumption of exploration in Block 47 of the Ghadames Basin, which had been paused since 2014. In a statement released on Friday, Nafusa Oil Operations highlighted that this acquisition is expected to facilitate new discoveries in Block 47. These discoveries can be quickly developed
President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian government have inaugurated three significant gas projects aimed at strengthening the country’s energy sector. The projects include the expanded AHL Gas Processing Plant, the ANOH Gas Processing Plant, and the 23.3-km ANOH to Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) Custody Transfer Metering Station Gas Pipeline, all located in southeastern Nigeria. The inauguration ceremony was chaired virtually by President Tinubu from Abuja. The AHL Gas Plant is a collaborative venture involving the Nigerian National
The Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) is advocating for rough-verification nodes outside the Group of Seven (G7) bloc as a way of enforcing sanctions on Russian goods, the organization said. “We believe this is a necessary step in the further development towards a control system that meets the interest of all stakeholders involved, in particular those of African producing countries,” according to a statement the AWDC released on Friday. “The conversations are progressing constructively, and
Independent upstream oil and gas company Invictus Energy Limited has signed an MoU with mine operator Dallaglio Investments and power generation firm Himoinsa Southern Africa Proprietary for a gas-to-power project in Zimbabwe. The project will generate electricity to power operations at the Eureka Gold Mine – one of the country’s largest. Under the partnership, gas extracted from the Cabora Bassa Project will fuel operations at Eureka – located 50km from the Mukuyu-2 wellsite. The African
Energy markets will continue to be affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict, according to Woodside Energy Group, Australia’s largest oil and gas producer. “The fallout has been massive, and the volatility is not over,” CEO Meg O’Neill said in a speech prepared for the Australian Energy Producers Conference scheduled for Tuesday in Perth. “It is instability absolutely nobody wants.” Although oil and gas prices have retreated from their initial spikes
Vivo Energy, owned by global commodities trader Vitol, will invest an initial 10 billion rand ($550.79 million) in its South African operations following its merger with Engen, South Africa’s trade minister Ebrahim Patel said on Wednesday. The investment is part of a range of public interest and competition commitments, designed to prevent job losses and continue supply contracts with local refineries, that domestic regulators sought when the merger was considered. “The company (Vivo) has committed
State-run China National Offshore Oil Co (CNOOC) announced on Friday that it had signed oil exploration and production concession contracts with Mozambique’s energy ministry and national energy company ENH. The contracts cover five offshore blocks in Mozambique, spanning a total area of approximately 29,000 square kilometers (11,200 square miles) with water depths ranging from 500 meters to 2,500 meters (1,640 feet to 8,202 feet), according to a company statement. The initial exploration phase is set
Portugal’s Galp Energia has reached an agreement to sell its 10% stake in the consortium prospecting for natural gas in Mozambique’s Rovuma basin to the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) for approximately €600 million. In a statement to Portugal’s Securities Markets Commission (CMVM) on Wednesday, Galp announced the sale as part of its “disciplined” investment strategy. The deal, valued at $650 million (€599 million), is expected to be finalized by the end of the
