Mozambique’s Minister of Mineral Resources, Esperanca Bias, announced in Maputo on Monday that the US oil company Anadarko found oil deposits in the Rovuma Basin, in the northern province of Cabo Delgado.
Bias, who was speaking during a press conference, explained that it is still a technical presence of oil, because there is still a long way to go for the evaluation of its commercial viability.
However, said the minister, the presence of oil deposits will encourage the intensification of oil prospecting in the Rovuma Basin.
Oil was found at a depth of 5100 meters, with the Minister claiming that it is the first time that oil was found off shore in the East African region.
"We say that there is oil but we need confirmation, meaning drilling at least three more exploratory wells to assess the commercial viability of the oil deposits”, said the minister.
Asked when that Anadarko would drill the remaining three exploratory wells, the Minister said that it may happen later this year.
"At this point they (Anadarko) are evaluating the samples collected and the findings will determine when the other exploratory wells will be drilled”, she explained.
In 2006, Anadarko signed a contract with the Mozambican government for the drilling of six exploratory wells in the Rovuma Basin.
Last February, Anadarko announced that the Windjammer exploratory well, off the coast of Cabo Delgado province, encountered more than 480 net feet of natural gas pay in high-quality reservoir sands, with a gross column of more than 1,200 feet.
Apart from Anadarko there are another three companies prospecting hydrocarbons in the Rovuma basin, including ENI from Italy, Petronas (Malaysia) and Statoil (Norway).
"These companies are finalizing the evaluation of seismic data and later they will go to the drilling stage”, declared the Minister.
Bias also said that her institution received recently a number of applications for the fourth tender for prospecting hydrocarbons in the country and that the winners will be announced soon.
