Not so fast: Australia's Invictus bursts Zimbabwe's oil bubble

The Australian oil exploration firm, Invictus Energy, has dispelled reports that it had discovered oil and gas deposits in parts of northern Zimbabwe.

Government through the president announced on Thursday that the country had discovered oil and were set to enter a sharing arrangement soon as commercial production started in mid-2020.

But in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange, Invictus tampered Zimbabwe’s expectations of an oil bonanza saying “an oil or gas discovery has not been made.”

“The prospective resource estimate for the Muzarabani prospect relates to undiscovered accumulations which have both a risk of discovery and a risk of development,” said Invictus.

“Although the Cabora Bassa Basin possess all the elements for a working petroleum system, a discovery can only be confirmed through drilling of an exploration well.”

Zimbabwean-born Invictus Managing Director Scott MacMillan attended Mnangagwa’s news conference on Thursday.