The Top African Oil Projects to Watch in 2023

According to GlobalData, more than 70 crude oil and gas projects are expected to come online by 2025 as sub-Saharan Africa undergoes a strong post-disaster recovery supported by energy development, which will add 2.3 million barrels per day to global oil and gas production.

The following are the most noteworthy sub-Saharan upstream oil projects in 2023 that may deliver the highest returns for their respective markets.

Begonia field development project in Angola

Last July Total Energy announced its final investment decision (FID) for the Begonia field, the first development in offshore Block 17/06, and awarded the EPSCI contract to McDermott two months later. the Begonia field development consists of five wells, linked to the existing Pazflor FPSO, and is in line with the company's strategy of using existing infrastructure strategy and is expected to add 30,000 BPD to current production.

The project is scheduled to start at the end of 2024 and will involve an investment of US$850 million and 1.3 million man-hours, 70 percent of which will be carried out in Angola. The Begonia field represents a key step in Angola's upstream recovery and affirms the commitment of its main international oil companies to develop their assets in the country.

Deepwater project north of Bonga, Nigeria

Despite a ten-year delay, Shell's Bonga North project in Nigeria's OML 118, which is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2023 FID, entered the final stages of the tender for the project last May, which involves linking 120,000 BPD of production to the Bongo Main FPSO at an investment cost of US$2 billion. It is worth noting that this project will be followed by the huge US$10 billion Bonga Southwest Aparo project, which is expected to be completed FID by 2024.

For its part, the Bonga North deepwater project has an estimated capacity of 525 million barrels of crude oil, and its commencement will be crucial in reversing the decline in Nigeria's production and allowing the country to regain its position as Africa's largest oil producer. 

Lake Albert Development Project, Uganda

The Lake Albert Development Project is another major oil project operated by Total Energy, for which an FID was agreed in February last year (securing a US$10 billion investment), paving the way for the development of the Tilenga and Kingfisher upstream oil projects, as well as the construction of a 1,500 km East African crude oil pipeline.

The successful development of Lake Albert Oil could potentially reach a production rate of 230,000 BPD and transform Uganda into a proven commercial oil producer, ushering in a new era of energy development in East Africa.

Senegal Sangomar oil field development project

Senegal is expected to produce its first oil in 2023 from the successful start-up of the Sangoma oil project, which includes the Rufisque, Sangoma, and Sangoma deep blocks and was reported to be 60% complete as of September last year. Led by Woodside Energy, in partnership with Senegal's national oil company Petrosen, the US$4.6 billion project is expected to yield around 231 million barrels of oil in its first phase of development, with total recoverable oil resources estimated at around 500 million barrels over its lifetime.

For Senegal, the first barrel of oil will mean new exports and associated revenue streams, as well as the bright prospect of industrialization and rapid economic growth.

Ghana Deepwater Cape Tano Three Points Project

New oil fields and discoveries in the Deepwater Cape Tano Three Points (DWT/CTP) block are expected to more than double Ghana's domestic production by 2023. The ultra-deepwater block consists of seven fields, including the Pecan, Pecan North, Almond, Beech, and Cob fields, as well as the Hickory North and Paradise gas fields.

The Norwegian operator is currently undertaking development work on the Pecan field, which could see domestic production rise from less than 200,000 barrels per day to 420,000 barrels per day by 2023.

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