Optimistic about Angola’s untapped natural gas potential, Azule Energy is considering a second gas exploration well after leading the country’s first gas-targeted drilling campaign last month, which succeeded, according to its CEO.
Angola projects its gas production will climb by more than 20% over the next five years as it ramps up exports to Europe and Asia and works to meet growing domestic needs. The push comes while oil output remains stagnant, despite the country’s decision to leave OPEC.
Sub-Saharan Africa’s second-largest crude producer after Nigeria, Angola is increasingly turning to natural gas as a driver for its industrialisation agenda, backed by favourable investment terms.
“Given that Angola has a couple of prolific basins, I can imagine that we will be able to find much more reserves of gas,” said Adriano Mongini, chief executive of Azule Energy, a joint venture between BP and Eni.
Angola Targets Higher Exports To Europe
Mongini revealed that a second well could be drilled within two years. Existing infrastructure near the first gas discovery, Gajajeira-01, could also speed up its development.
Preliminary estimates indicate Gajajeira-01 holds more than one trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas and as much as 100 million barrels of condensate, according to a press statement.
Government data shows natural gas exports reached 1.35 million metric tons in the second quarter, up 19.1% from the first quarter. Liquefied natural gas made up the bulk of these exports, with India and Spain as the leading buyers.
Despite the gains, gas revenues remain a small fraction of Angola’s oil sales, which hit $5.6 billion over the same period. The oil-dependent economy is also navigating public discontent over efforts to reduce domestic fuel subsidies.
Angola’s national oil and gas agency, ANPG, forecasts that gas production will rise from 2,973 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD) in 2025 to 3,659 MMSCFD by 2030. However, some analysts believe this year’s average output could fall short of the target.
Chevron’s Sanha Lean Gas project and the Azule-led New Gas Consortium (NGC) are expected to spearhead this growth. “Development of (NGC’s) Quiluma and Maboqueiro fields, due to launch around end-2025, is the real litmus test for gas monetisation in Angola,” said Jimmy Boulter, an analyst at Enverus.
Oil production, in contrast, is projected to decline to just above one million barrels per day (bpd) by 2027 from the current level of around 1.1 million bpd. ANPG officials say this reduced output could be maintained only if investment and development plans remain on track.
The government estimates that $60 billion will be invested in oil and gas over the next five years, with 23 exploration wells planned, including 11 offshore.
Recent projects have temporarily boosted Angola’s oil profile, such as Azule’s 120,000 bpd Agogo FPSO, which began producing in July, and a 60,000 bpd increase from TotalEnergies’ operations.
“We expect post-2030 oil production to decline significantly,” said David Thomson, an analyst with Welligence.
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