Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani visit BP’s Grand Tortue Ahmeyim platform
African gas emerges from oil’s shadow
Producing, developing and harnessing gas across the continent is now a priority, but monetising and maximising the resource remains a challenge
African’s gas industry is full of dichotomies that are finally being resolved: oil versus gas, gas-to-power versus LNG, new exploration versus mature fields. An obsession with oil exploration had belied the fact that gas made up 75% of the hydrocarbons discovered since 2010. From being oil’s baby brother, gas is now all grown up and must stand on its own two feet. From all the 76b boe discovered over the past 15 years, some 57b boe has been the gaseous variety. And the gas outlook is upbeat as production is likely to continue gradually increasing from around 4m boe/d and has the potential to double over the next ten years. African hydrocarbon production will be supported in the midterm by re
Also in this section
1 April 2026
Golden Pass’s startup offers QatarEnergy a timely boost but may also force a difficult choice between honouring disrupted contracts and capitalising on soaring spot LNG prices
1 April 2026
It is not a case of if or when, but the length and magnitude of economic damage from elevated oil prices
1 April 2026
The US-Iran conflict demonstrates the need for diversification in several senses of the word. It also exposes the limits of Washington applying pressure on major oil and gas producers it considers geopolitical adversaries
31 March 2026
Disappointing results in its bidding round are a reality check for Libya, and global exploration generally
