Namibia’s energy sector has received another boost as Portugal’s oil and gas company, Galp, alongside its joint venture partners Namcor and Knowledge Katti’s Custos Energy, announced a new discovery of light oil and gas-condensate. This marks the second of up to four wells planned under their current exploration and appraisal (E&A) program in license PEL 83, located off the Namibian coast.
The Saipem-owned drillship has already moved to commence drilling the next well in the prolific Orange Basin. This region has become a hotspot for oil and gas exploration, with several successful discoveries from Galp’s previous campaigns.
The exploration and appraisal momentum in Namibia is surging following initial breakthroughs at Graff-1, La Rona-1, Jonker-1, and Venus-1. License PEL 83 lies strategically north of Shell’s PEL 39—home to the Graff, La Rona, and Jonker discoveries—and near TotalEnergies’ significant Venus oil find in PEL 56, a multi-billion-barrel resource.
Galp confirmed that its Mopane 1-A appraisal well, drilled using the Saipem Santorini drillship on October 23, 2024, has struck light oil and gas-condensate within high-quality reservoir-bearing sands. This well forms part of the company’s strategy to include both exploration and appraisal wells to unlock the potential of Namibia’s oil reserves.
The latest findings reaffirm Namibia’s position as an emerging oil and gas frontier, with global players intensifying their activities in the Orange Basin.
