OPEC is considering Namibia for potential membership, and willing to assist the country its oil exploration journey.
Secretary General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Haitham Al Ghais, has expressed enthusiasm about a prospective collaboration with Namibia, and affirmed OPEC’s readiness to assist the southern African nation in its oil exploration journey.
The OPEC+ oil producers coalition, having seen departures like Angola in recent times, is considering Namibia for potential membership, Reuters reported.
This move comes as Namibia gears up to potentially become Africa’s fourth-largest oil producer by the next decade.
What the Secretary-General said:
“We are excited about the potential of the Namibian OPEC partnership and stand ready to offer support at this crucial juncture,” Al Ghais said at an international energy conference in Namibia.
“We are enthused by the discoveries in Namibia. Namibian oil and energy will be essential to meeting future demand.”
“We encourage potential investors to look at Namibia and the abundance of possibilities here,” Al Ghais said.
In recent years, TotalEnergies and Shell have found around 2.6 billion barrels of oil, getting Namibia ready to start producing by 2030.
With the current discoveries, Namibia is looking at 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) of peak production capacity by the next decade.
While this figure is smaller than Angola’s output, Namibia’s production capacity could increase with more successful exploration endeavours.
Smaller oil producers have joined OPEC in recent years. In 2017, Equatorial Guinea became a full member of the organization, and in 2016, Gabon re-joined OPEC. Additionally, Congo attained full membership in OPEC in 2018.
