Luanda — The first phase of the construction of the "Barra do Dande" Ocean Terminal (TOBD), with a capacity to store 582,000 cubic meters of liquid and gaseous fuels, will be completed this year, the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo, announced on Wednesday in Luanda.
The minister, who was speaking at the New Year's greeting ceremony, stressed that the sector's objective is to increase storage capacity and improve the entire fuel supply system.
On the occasion, the minister acknowledged the lack of gas stations in many municipalities nationwide, a fact that opens a window of opportunities for small, medium and large entrepreneurs to participate in this activity.
He reiterated the sector's commitment to continue developing actions aimed at improving the distribution of fuels and lubricants, throughout the national territory, through the construction and rehabilitation of fuel stations.
To this end, he called on the management of the Petroleum Derivatives Regulatory Institute (IRDP) and Sonangol to continue their efforts to raise awareness and seek solutions so that this situation can be improved or reversed in the near future.
According to Diamantino Azevedo, the sector will continue to promote investments in oil exploration and production, to maintain production levels above one million barrels per day.
He also highlighted the continued implementation of the 2020-2025 Exploration Strategy and the 2019-2025 Concession Allocation Strategy as the main actions planned for 2024.
Also, on the agenda of the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas (MIREMPET) is the preparation of the Bidding Strategy for the Kassanje and Etosha Okavango Inland Basins, as well as the assessment of the oil potential of the development areas.
In the field of gas, the minister said that the sector will continue to develop projects for this non-associated natural product and, in particular, work to ensure the operationalization of the New Gas Consortium, which will aim to reduce the supply deficit to Angola LNG and enable the implementation of other projects.
He also recalled that the continuation of the Refining Strategy, with the completion of the construction of the Cabinda Refinery and continuing the actions inherent to the construction of the Soyo and Lobito refineries, to ensure the country's needs in refined products, among other projects linked to decarbonization.
Actions developed in 2023
Throughout the 2023 financial year, the sector developed actions aimed at implementing the Hydrocarbon Exploration Strategy 2020-2025 and the Petroleum Concessions Allocation Strategy 2019-2025.
According to minister Diamantino Azevedo, last year 12 onshore blocks in the Lower Congo and Kwanza basins were tendered, as well as the Concession Area of the New Gas Consortium was awarded, as well as the study of the Etosha-Okavango Basin began, as part of the process of evaluating the hydrocarbon potential of the Sedimentary Basins of the Interior of Angola.
In relation to gas production, he highlighted the inauguration of phase 2 of the 'Falcão' Gas Reception and Distribution Unit, located in the municipality of Soyo, province of Zaire.
According to the minister, the Falcão Project is very important for the country's objective of creating a gas industry and should, among other projects, supply gas to the future Ammonia and Urea factory, which is also being built in Soyo.
He also highlighted the completion of the construction of phase 1 of the Cabinda Refinery at the end of this year and the signing of the 'EPC' Contract and the formalization meeting for the start of construction of the Lobito Refinery, between Sonangol and the Chinese company China National Chemical Engineering.
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He also recalled Angola's departure from OPEC and the submission of the first report to the secretariat of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative.
"The decision by the Government of Angola to leave OPEC was not a last-minute reflection, but was an issue already foreseen, taking into account that this Organization no longer met the country's values and interests, namely unanimous decision-making and the establishment of production quotas that call into question our real production capabilities and needs", he reiterated.
According to the minister, the sector ended the year with an average production rate of around one million and 90,000 barrels of oil per day. ASS/QCB/DOJ
