Statoil ASA Sells 10% Stake in Angolan Oil Block to Ecopetrol

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VENTURES AFRICA – Statoil ASA, a Norwegian multinational oil and gas giant has sold 10 percent stake in Angola’s block 39 oil fields to Colombia’s Ecopetrol to focus on extensive drilling in Kwanza River Basin.
“The sales were part of a continuing process of adjustment of Statoil’s portfolio in order to maximise the value of the assets. The transactions will allow Statoil to unlock capital ahead of an extensive drilling campaign in the Kwanza basin,” said Gareth Burns, Statoil senior vice president, Strategy and Business Development.

The transactions was approved the Angola state oil company Sonangol and the Angolan Ministry of Petroleum.
The company’s equity production from Angola totalled 200,000 barrels per day of oil in 2013. Statoil has participating interests in four producing assets and several other licenses in the Congo basin.
Oil is the backbone of the Angola’s economy. This sector makes up over 90 percent of the Country’s exports. The first oil surveys date back to 1906, and it was not until 1955 that the first oil well was discovered.
In 1966, Cabinda Gulf Oil Company discovered important oil reserves in Cabinda. From then on, oil started playing one of the most important roles in the Angolan economy, having surpassed coffee in oil exports as of 1973.