Welcome to Africanews

Please select your experience

Watch Live

Business

business

Congo: Government in search of an investor for three operation licences in oil

Republic of the Congo

Authorities in the Republic of Congo are searching for investors for three operation licences in the oil services as the French oil group Total has lost interest in the deal.

The Minister of communication, Thierry Moungala, recently announced this in a press conference in Brazzaville.

He said the departure of the French oil group from the fields would not have a significant impact on the economy.

He noted that Total would continue operation with the licences until the government finds a replacement.

Already, another French company, Perenco has indicated willingness to take over 39 percent of Total’s deal and work alongside the Italian company Eni and Congolese partners.

Total had explained, its withdrawal from the three licenses is as a result of the weakness of their performance.

Due to the fall in the prices of crude, the group said it prefers to concentrate on another Congolese project in the sea, which it sees as more important.

The new project requires an investment of $10 billion and production is expected to commence in 2017.

However, the Republic of Congo had earlier this year, announced plans to reduce its expenses by about 9 percent as the decline in the prices of oil in the global market hit the country’s revenue.

According to Moungala, expenses under the current budget are to fall to 2.122 trillion CFA francs from the initial 2.333 trillion CFA francs.

Congo is also considering easing the fall in production to overtake Equatorial Guinea in becoming sub-Sahara Africa’s third-largest crude producer by 2017.

Press Agencies

View more