Choppy waters ahead for Equatorial Guinea as production declines
Minister of mines, industry and energy, Gabriel Obiang Lima, is taking a hard line with investors amid low oil prices and falling output
Gabriel Obiang Lima is a frustrated man. Equatorial Guinea’s energy minister spoke candidly to PE about what he described as “dilly-dallying” from international oil companies such as ExxonMobil, Marathon, China National Offshore Oil Corporation and Noble Energy, who he said also showed flagrant disregard for his office. The oil-dependent economy looks set to contract through 2020, under pressure from low oil prices and declining production. Obiang Lima said his ministry was disinclined to grant ExxonMobil an extension on the Zafiro deepwater field in Block B where the US major operates with an 80% interest, once it expires in 2023. Production peaked at the field in 2004 at 280,000 barrels p
Also in this section
22 April 2026
The failure of OMV Petrom’s keenly watched exploration campaign at Bulgaria’s Han Asparuh block highlights the Black Sea’s uneven track record, despite major successes like Neptun Deep and Sakarya
22 April 2026
Sustained strikes on ports, terminals and refineries are testing the resilience of Russia’s oil export system, yet rapid repairs, rerouting and surging prices mean the campaign has yet to deliver a decisive blow
21 April 2026
After overcoming a COVID-induced demand collapse with several years of successful market management, geopolitical events have conspired to provide the pact’s biggest test to date
21 April 2026
The regime’s policy of using nuclear ambiguity as a deterrent may have failed but it has realised it has other cards to play, while its neighbours are reappraising their approach to security
