French major TotalEnergies announced the sale of its stake in 18 Oil Mining Licenses (OMLs) in Nigeria – the majority of which are onshore – to Mauritius-based company Chappal Energies this month.
As an independent energy company, Chappal Energies specializes in revitalizing brownfield assets and unlocking latent value in Nigeria and Africa’s oil and gas resources.
The transaction is the latest in a series of deals in which junior and independent explorers – as well as African national oil companies (NOCs) – are increasingly taking ownership of onshore assets, as global majors look to divest in favour of large-scale offshore operations. This trend will be explored at the Invest in African Energy 2025 Forum (http://apo-opa.co/4fnjhWX) taking place in Paris in May 2025, along with available farm-in, merger and acquisition opportunities involving Africa’s onshore acreage. Showcasing Africa’s leading investment prospects, the forum aims to attract financial and technical partners to the sector, with a view to maximizing Africa’s oil and gas production.
The Nigerian market is a prime example of this industry shift. In January, British multinational Shell (http://apo-opa.co/4fdkxvX) announced it would be selling its Nigerian onshore subsidiary – which holds stakes in 15 OMLs – to Renaissance, a consortium where four out of five companies are local Nigerian exploration and production firms. Earlier this month, Nigerian multinational Oando completed its acquisition of Eni’s (http://apo-opa.co/4c2tNjJ) onshore business, while Chappal Energies acquired Equinor’s ownership in offshore OML 128 last November. Nigeria’s current 2024 bid round (http://apo-opa.co/4bYfUmE) features two onshore blocks in the Niger Delta, which represents one of the world’s most established hydrocarbon provinces supported by extensive multi-client seismic data.
Angola is another major upstream market with untapped onshore potential, having primarily focused on offshore exploration and production to date. Redevelopment of the country’s onshore Kwanza Basin is being led by Angolan NOC Sonangol (http://apo-opa.co/4fdkyQx) and Angola-focused oil and gas company Corcel, which spud the Tobias-14 well last September and is currently conducting initial flow testing. In Angola’s latest onshore licensing round, nine companies were selected as operators and five as non-operators after national regulator ANPG received more than 50 bids (http://apo-opa.co/4bZQVz2) for 12 onshore blocks in the Lower Congo and Kwanza basins. The country’s upcoming 2025 round features four onshore blocks on offer, opening up attractive entry opportunities for indigenous and independent explorers.
Onshore prospects are also driving Africa’s frontier oil and gas markets. Earlier this month, Canadian independent ReconAfrica and joint venture partner NAMCOR spud the Naingopo exploration well in Namibia’s onshore Kavango Basin. The Kavango basin is home to the Damara Fold Belt, a highly prospective play estimated with over 22 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered gas. Successful finds in the basin could establish Namibia as a major onshore market, in addition to the country’s prolific offshore Orange Basin discoveries.
For junior and independent explorers, the advantages of entering Africa’s onshore market are myriad: lower operational costs and easier access to equipment and infrastructure, coupled with faster drilling times and reduced environmental risks. At a time when the global market demands strong fiscals and local value addition for exploration projects, Africa’s onshore prospects represent a strategic pathway to enhanced participation of African home-grown explorers and diversification of the upstream landscape.
