Block R has been returned to the State; The Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons reiterates its openness to more investment in the hydrocarbons sector and recognizes Ophir’s commitment to Equatorial Guinea.
The Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons of Equatorial Guinea has confirmed that the production sharing agreement for Ophir Energy’s Block R has not been extended.
The ministry issued a notice informing the London-based company of its decision in December after Ophir’s exploration license expired. As a result, Ophir is no longer the operator of the block, which is now returned to the state.
“The ministry highly appreciates and appreciates Ophir’s commitment to its exploration activities in Equatorial Guinea and continues to encourage more investment in the appropriate opportunities offered by its hydrocarbon sector,” said Gabriel Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima.
The ministry welcomes Ophir’s exploration efforts under the Block R license, which contains six commercial discoveries.
Ophir’s work program began in 2008 and three exploratory wells led to the discovery of Fortuna and Lykos. The company planned to install a floating liquefied natural gas plant called Fortuna FLNG, provided that the necessary funding was secured. Floating LNG production units have become a model for the development of offshore gas in a well-supplied global gas market.
Covering an area of approximately 2,450km², the Block R is located in the Niger Delta Distal, about 140km off the coast of Bioko Island, with depths ranging from 600 to 1,950m.
It is estimated that it has 3.4 billion cubic feet of recoverable gas reserves (TCF), of which about 1.3TCF in the Fortuna field, about 1.2TCF in the Silenus complex, about 0, 5TCF in the Tonal discovery, the rest of the smaller discoveries including 0.4TCF.
