KEY POINTS
- Chevron farms out a 25% stake in Namibia’s PEL82 to QatarEnergy.
- Chevron retains operatorship with a 55% interest.
- Previous drilling recovered light oil from the exploration area.
US energy company Chevron has agreed to transfer a 25% non-operated interest in an offshore oil exploration licence in Namibia to QatarEnergy, expanding the Middle Eastern company’s participation in the country’s emerging oil and gas sector.
The agreement covers Petroleum Exploration Licence 0082 (PEL82), which comprises blocks 2112B and 2212A in the Walvis Basin. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Upon completion, Chevron will retain operatorship of the licence with a 55% interest, while QatarEnergy will hold 25%. Namibia’s Namcor E&P and Custos Energy will each retain a 10% stake.
Chevron retains control of exploration block
The transaction will see Chevron reduce its interest in PEL82 from 80% to 55%, while remaining responsible for operating the exploration block.
The farm-out agreement will be executed through Chevron Namibia Exploration II Ltd., a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation.
QatarEnergy said the agreement would give it a non-operated interest in the licence, allowing it to participate in the exploration activities without taking over operational responsibility.
Chevron acquired its 80% operated interest in the licence in 2024 through an earlier farm-in agreement with the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia, known as Namcor.
Licence covers more than 11,000 square kilometres
PEL82 covers approximately 11,444 square kilometres in the Walvis Basin, offshore Namibia, with water depths ranging from 350 metres to 2,300 metres.
The exploration area has an established seismic data base. At the time Chevron acquired its interest in 2024, about 70% of the licence area was covered by existing seismic surveys.
These included approximately 3,500 kilometres of two-dimensional seismic data and 9,500 square kilometres of three-dimensional seismic data.
Previous exploration activities also included the Murombe-1 and Wingat-1 wells, which provided geological information about the area’s petroleum potential.
Earlier drilling indicates oil potential
Results from previous drilling confirmed the regional extension of the petroleum system and the presence of the Barremian-Aptian oil-prone source rock, known as the Kudu shale.
The Murombe-1 well penetrated the Baobab sands, which recorded porosity of approximately 20%. Porosity measures the amount of open space within a rock formation that can potentially hold oil or gas.
The Wingat-1 well also recovered oil to the surface, with an API gravity ranging between 38 and 41 degrees. This indicates relatively light crude oil.
The latest agreement adds QatarEnergy to the group of companies participating in exploration activities offshore Namibia, as international energy firms continue to pursue opportunities in the country’s offshore basins.
