“When I was here last year, we had more than 20 blocks available. Today, we have only a handful of them, I believe less than seven,” Oburu Ondo announced. The uptake follows the ministry’s decision in May to award acreage through direct negotiation, rather than licensing rounds.
The minister used the session to court Japanese and U.S. investment in the country’s Gas Mega Hub. The hub brings gas from multiple fields, including the cross-border Yoyo-Yolanda resource shared with Cameroon, to the EG LNG plant at Punta Europa. “I can see the opportunity here of increasing the processing capacity, not only of EG LNG, but also building different plants,” he said.
He also identified mainland LPG infrastructure as an immediate opening, noting the country currently relies on a converted vessel for storage. “One investment that is very clear that can be done is to build LPG storage in the mainland,” he said. He added that the EG-27 discovery remains open to investors, with talks continuing with ConocoPhillips on a non-exclusive basis.
Japanese trading house Marubeni already holds a 6.067% stake in EG LNG through its UK-registered subsidiary.
Yasuhiro Hashimoto, Special Advisor to Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry and Chief Representative for Africa at METI, said Africa is becoming an increasingly important supply option for Japan. He described Japan’s response to the disruption in three parts: diversifying suppliers, expanding markets and strengthening emergency preparedness. He also pointed to a stable business environment as the key condition for deeper cooperation.
Oburu Ondo also discussed how Equatorial Guinea has deepened its energy investment relationship with Washington over the past year. Joshua Volz, Special Envoy for Global Energy Integration at the U.S. Department of Energy, said U.S. development finance institutions, including the Office of Strategic Capital, are pursuing closer partnerships with African downstream projects, particularly in refining. “When the United States takes an equity position in a project, that’s a long-term commitment,” Volz said.
Volz cited local capital as a strong signal to foreign investors. The minister responded that regulatory certainty and legal stability can carry similar weight in capital-intensive projects. “This is the time to capture the momentum,” Oburu Ondo said, “so that we make sure that we are trusted, not only to attract businesses, but to keep the businesses in Africa.”
The ministry has said it will continue awarding acreage through direct negotiation until further notice, leaving the remaining blocks open to bilateral offers from investors.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
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