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The planned East African Crude Oil Pipeline project continues to face financing difficulties – and the DRC’s hopes that Eacop capacity may be on offer to evacuate its own eventual Lake Albert exports seem overblown – but officials in Kampala are also pushing ahead with plans for a third licensing round and a 60,000 b/d refinery, write James Gavin and African Energy staff.

Although Angola’s renewable energy potential is exciting some industry interest, an electricity supply industry that is based on large hydroelectric power (HEP) and gas-to-power plants to provide baseload is unlikely to be radically transformed in the coming years. Amid concern over the impact of low water levels on HEP generation, it is natural gas that will occupy most government attention.

Sound Energy’s deal to bring Yemeni-owned Calvalley Petroleum into the Tendrara gas field could help it to deliver a project that should answer some of state utility Office National de l’Electricité et de l’Eau Potable (Onee)’s feedstock problems, following the end of Algerian supplies through the Europe-Maghreb Gasline (GME) in 2021 . African Energy takes a closer look at Morocco's gas supply options.

Aqua Power’s small-scale liquefied natural gas project will supply AngloGold Ashanti’s Iduapriem mine in Tarkwa, Ghana, as a major miner offtakes gas via a ‘virtual pipeline’ – a solution for providing C&I baseload with considerable potential for growth across sub-Saharan Africa.

Cameroon Oil Transportation Company’s new senior leadership team features figures from Chad and Cameroon, prompting speculation that their bilateral rift may be healing. UK-based independent Savannah Energy remains a central player, but may come under further pressure if the two governments start acting in concert, writes James Gavin.

South Sudan is facing a dilemma about how it keeps its oil and gas flowing at a time when its export route via Sudan is at risk from a conflict  that has fanned out well beyond Khartoum.

Floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) is an emerging option for African operations – and, indeed, is being pioneered by projects on the continent – as with Nigerian National Petroleum Company’s deal with Port Harcourt-based UTM Offshore to build a 1.5m t/yr FLNG vessel to develop the Yoho field.

The coup d’état in Niger appears to be undermining oil and gas sector ambitions in neighbouring Benin, with London Stock Exchange-listed independent Zenith Energy citing regional political instability as a reason for pulling out of talks for a production-sharing contract to resume output from Block 1 and potential delays anticipated to the $7bn Niger-Benin export pipeline (NBEP), which was due to be completed this year.

A report that two recently acquired vessels being converted into FSRUs are destined for South Africa further bolsters the idea that the long-stalled deployment of Karpower’s floating gas-fired capacity has gained momentum, despite continued opposition from campaigners

South Africa’s EPCM Holdings has been asked to carry out technical and commercial assessments on two possible routes for piping gas from the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) and Bir Allah offshore fields, with a view to promoting industrialisation and supplying gas-to-power projects in Mauritania.

The Greater Tortue Ahmeyim LNG and Sangomar oil projects have announced delays, which Senegalese sources told African Energy were caused by one-off external factors that should be resolved soon, while a date has been set for the Yakaar-Teranga offshore gas field’s FID.

Kosmos Energy has taken an operated stake in the 25tcf offshore Yakaar-Teranga gas field, following BP’s exit, and says it intends to export up to 3m t/yr of LNG. Longstanding plans to supply local offtakers through a new pipeline are also set to continue. Meanwhile the cross-border Senegal-Mauritania LNG development continues, but progress could be held up as the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) project’s FPSO awaits repairs off Durban, writes Marc Howard.

Were projects assessed solely on their economic and social impact, the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (Eacop) and Lake Albert would probably be widely praised. Uganda needs both the energy and investment the projects bring. But the projects have drawn fierce criticism from environmental campaigners and NGOs, in Uganda and beyond in a concerted, high-profile campaign that has registered successes.

ExxonMobil has provided an update on the expected start date for front-end engineering and design (Feed) work on the 18m t/yr Rovuma liquefied natural gas (RLNG) development in Cabo Delgado. The United States supermajor also said it was undertaking a security assessment in partnership with TotalEnergies, as it targets an exit from force majeure.

Financing from Saudi-based International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation is part of a $600m three-year deal signed in May 2023 and will pay for imports of petroleum products needed for electricity generation.