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Having cancelled Ophir Energy’s licence for Block R and the Fortuna gas field, Equatorial Guinea plans to include the acreage in its upcoming bid round.

The governments of Equatorial Guinea and Sierra Leone have signed a memorandum of understanding agreeing to share experience in oil and gas exploration.

Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons plans to announce the appointment of a strategic partner for its Gas Megahub project by October. Mines and hydrocarbons minister Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima told African Energy that the strategic partner would start work on the project by year-end or early in 2019. He said the ministry had been working with Marathon Oil Corporation and Noble Energy on arrangements to backfill gas for the EGLNG liquefied natural gas plant as the first phase of the project to replace declining production from the Alba field.

The government of Equatorial Guinea has invested considerably in promoting its ‘soft power’ – including hosting such prestigious events as the African Cup of Nations football tournament and, next year, the African Development Bank annual meetings – in a costly effort to reverse decades of negative perceptions based on a flow of corruption and other governance abuses. Through his energy diplomacy and commitment to engaging with investors and other partners, mines and hydrocarbons minister Gabriel Mbega Obiang Lima has played an important role.

The Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons has signalled a tough new line on local content regulations, announcing on 17 July that it had ordered oil companies operating in the country to cancel all contracts with Canada’s CHC Helicopters.Oil companies operating in Equatorial Guinea have been given 60 days to unwind contracts and find new suppliers, with only those companies in compliance with the local content provisions established in 2014 allowed to bid for contracts.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 4 June announced approval of a staff-monitored programme (SMP) for Equatorial Guinea as the country struggles to reduce its dependence on oil. The IMF said the SMP, which does not include funding, will help to build a track record of performance as the basis for a potential funded programme in H2 this year.The SMP, covering the period January-July 2018, aims to reduce the fiscal deficit, increase non-oil revenue and address public financial management weaknesses while protecting social spending.

Equatorial Guinea has launched a big drive to explore the Rio Muni Basin, with Kosmos Energy and Ophir Energy taking new blocks. Kosmos announced an agreement in October 2017 to acquire exploration blocks S, W and EG-21, as well as Hess’s producing Ceiba and Okume fields, while Ophir has taken EG-24, which borders São Toméan waters, where Kosmos has interests in six blocks. Mines and hydrocarbons minister Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima said Rio Muni stood out in the region as relatively unexplored compared to neighbouring Gabon and Cameroon.

The Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons and GEPetrol signed an agreement on 9 May with Noble Energy to provide additional gas as backfill for Marathon’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant as the first phase of the government’s planned Gas Megahub project. The proposed Gas Megahub will consist of interlinked production, aggregation and processing facilities offshore and onshore, supplying gas to the Punta Europa gas complex, which includes the Malabo power station, Atlantic Methanol Production Company plant and Equatorial Guinea LNG plant.

Equatorial Guinea plans an Energy Year in 2019, promoting the sector while marking 50 years of independence from Spain. The government plans a series of events, starting with the biennial summit of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum in Malabo. Mines and hydrocarbons minister Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima said Malabo was also aiming to host ministerial meetings of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, as well as a ministerial meeting of the African Petroleum Producers Association along with a conference and exhibition.

Mozambique and Equatorial Guinea signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on 5 March to enhance bilateral relations in the energy and mining sectors. The MoU was signed in Maputo by Equatorial Guinea’s mines and hydrocarbons minister Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima and Mozambique’s mineral resources and energy minister Ernesto Max Elias Tonela. This agreement is the latest in a series of bilateral energy cooperation MoUs signed by Equatorial Guinea with African countries.

After official silence and considerable speculation, the Equatorial Guinea government confirmed reports that a putsch was launched against President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo on 24 December. Security has been considerably ratcheted up in the oil-rich dictatorship after the government in early January said “mercenaries” – at least 27 armed men it claimed were from Chad, Cameroon, Sudan and Central African Republic – had been arrested. Arms and ammunition were found just over the border in Cameroon, security minister Nicolas Obama Nchama said.

Ophir Energy said on 18 December it is turning to an alternative funding source for the Fortuna liquefied natural gas project after failing to secure a deal with a consortium of three Chinese banks. Ophir said it was prioritising a solution that would see “a leading Asian bank” provide funding of up to $1.2bn on similar commercial terms to those agreed earlier this year with the Chinese consortium

The Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons announced on 4 December that ExxonMobil has submitted a Notice of Discovery for the Avestruz-1 (Ostrich) well on Block EG-06 and is evaluating its commercial potential and possible development options. ExxonMobil signed a contract in 2015 for the block, which lies southwest of Block B, which contains the Zafiro field, and north of Ophir Energy’s Block R, where the Fortuna gas field is under development.

Equatorial Guinea will host the fifth annual Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) Gas Summit in 2019. The GECF groups Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela, and the summit is held every two years.

Kosmos Energy has taken three blocks offshore Equatorial Guinea and a stake in the Ceiba and Okume fields, marking a return for the team that discovered the fields nearly 20 years ago. Kosmos is acquiring Block EG-21, Block S and Block W and the production assets as part of a 50-50 joint venture company with Trident Energy, a new exploration and production company founded by former members of Perenco senior management and backed by Warburg Pincus.