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A new company offers the opportunity to invest in hydrocarbons plays in aspiring independent states, which its chief executive says is a rare form of ethical oil and gas investment. Belize-registered Kilimanjaro Capital describes itself as the only publicly listed company focused on the acquisition and development of future contingent natural resource licences (FCLs). The Calgary-based company is concentrating on Biafra, Southern Cameroons and Cabinda. Chief executive Zulfikar Rashid told African Energy in an interview the FCLs assumed that a newly independent state would renegotiate oil and gas contracts on its territory, and that as part of that process a stake would be granted to Kilimanjaro in recognition of its support.

The government has approved two farm-out agreements enabling Africa Oil Corporation to bring in Marathon Oil Corporation to the Rift Basin Area and increasing New Age (African Global Energy)’s holding in the Adigala Block. Under the terms of the Marathon farm-out agreement, Marathon will acquire a 50% interest in the Rift Basin Area. Africa Oil will maintain operatorship of the block, but Marathon has the right to take over if a commercial discovery is made. Marathon will pay Africa Oil $3m of past costs, and will fund $15m of its partner’s share of exploration.

A high-profile meeting at the Ras Lanuf oil terminal between United Nations Support Mission in Libya (Unsmil) chief Martin Kobler and central region Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG) commander Ibrahim Al-Jathran on 21 July was intended to herald a breakthrough deal that would result in oil exports restarting imminently. A payoff for Jathran was approved by the UN, the Presidency Council and, after some protest, by National Oil Corporation (NOC). However, both Unsmil and the council appear to have underestimated both the complexity of Libya’s oil industry and the competing interests in its oil crescent.

The Nigeria-focused Sirius Petroleum, previously known as Global Gaming Technologies, has announced that it has negotiated financing from a London-based family office trust, Capital Investment Office (CapInvest), for a potential marginal oil field project. Sirius, whose shares are listed on the London

The Tullow Oil-led PEL 37 joint venture has contracted the Ocean Rig Poseidon to drill the Cormorant-1 exploration well. The well is expected to spud on 1 September. Partner Pancontinental Oil & Gas said the well had the potential to contain prospective resources of 124m barrels of recoverable oil, while the cumulative potential of the top four mapped prospects in the block totalled 915m barrels of recoverable oil.

Aker Energy has agreed to buy Hess Corporation’s 50% stake in the Deepwater Tano Cape Three Points (DWTCTP) Block for $100m as the pace of exploration offshore West Africa continues to pick up. Hess has declared four discoveries on the block to be commercial, including the Pecan field, which it expected to form the primary development hub. Its partner on the block is Lukoil, which retained its stake after relinquishing the Deepwater Cape Three Points Block, where ExxonMobil signed an agreement in January.

Uganda and Tanzania signed an intergovernmental agreement on their proposed $3.55bn crude export pipeline from Lake Albert to Tanga port on 26 May. The agreement was signed in Kampala by Ugandan energy minister Irene Muloni and Tanzanian minister of constitutional and legal affairs Palamagamba John Kabudi.The 1,445km long, 24-inch diameter pipeline has an ambitious schedule aiming for completion in 2020.

Sonatrach has announced that with its partners, Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) and PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corporation (PVEP), it has signed an engineering, procurement and construction contract with Italy’s Maire Tecnimont for the Bir Sebaa Phase II and Mouiat Outlad Messaoud (MOM) field development project. Sonatrach estimated the contract – which has been expected since 2016 – at $400m, with work due to take 40 months from an unspecified start date.

Denver-based Zulu Energy has unexpectedly found natural gas while drilling for coalbed methane.

Seadrill rig contract; IPR scores Jurassic discovery in Western Desert; Sea Dragon drills on Dahab North; Kiarsseny farm-in deal; Hyedua appraisal success; Taoudeni drilling to start next year; JV proposed with UAE company; Second gas find for Circle; Data facility; EAX in exploration deal; Kingfisher appraisal success

Having secured new equity finance and access to local debt markets, Sound Energy expects to receive a concession for its initial development in the Tendrara-Meridja Basin by Q4 2017 or Q1 2018, and will then start drilling 18 development wells to produce gas for sale into the local market from Q3 2019. The AIM-listed company sees this as an initial phase in its Moroccan operation. Speaking in Milan on 26 January, managing director Luca Madeddu said Sound had identified three other areas for possible future development.

Tullow Oil is days away from first oil at its $4bn TEN project, which will produce oil and gas from the Tweneboa, Enyenra and Ntomme fields to the west of the Jubilee field. Tullow said TEN would increase overall net production by 60%, significantly improving the company’s ability to manage its debt. Income from production at the Jubilee field has been hit by a number of factors including technical problems with the floating production storage and offloading vessel (FPSO), which led to an extended shutdown in April, and the lower oil price.

Marathon Oil Corporation is looking for buyers for its East African onshore assets. The company, which is refocusing its global exploration and production programme, plans to open an online data room on 29 May with Schlumberger’s Indigopool.com portal, and is seeking bids for the entire portfolio or any combination of the four blocks. The Ethiopian assets comprise 50% in Africa Oil Corporation’s Rift Basin Area and 20% in Tullow Oil’s South Omo Block. The Kenyan assets consist of 50% in Africa Oil’s Block 9, and 15% in Tullow’s Block 12A.

London-based Savannah Petroleum has said that the focus of its initial three-well drilling campaign will be on the R3 contract area, which it says sits within a proven petroleum “sweet spot” in the Agadem Rift Basin, with some of the largest discoveries located in adjacent areas to the north and south, including producing fields operated by China National Petroleum Corporation. The R3 area is also close to existing and planned infrastructure in the basin.

Sixteen companies have submitted applications for one or more of five offshore blocks in Ghana’s first exploration licensing round, according to the energy ministry. The companies are Tullow Oil, Eni, Kosmos, Vitol and Aker Energy, which all have existing operations in Ghana, and potential newcomers Total, Cairn Energy, Harmony Oil and Gas Corporation, ExxonMobil, CNOOC, Qatar Petroleum, BP, Global Petroleum Group, First E&P, Sasol and Equinor.