ExxonMobil plans expansion into Namibe basin

With production declining at its existing Angola assets, the major acquires three licences off the country’s south coast

 ExxonMobil has signed risk service agreements (RSAs) to become the operator of Namibe deepwater blocks 30, 44 and 45 two years after penning a memorandum of understanding  to explore the basin. The RSAs—signed with the Angolan National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANPG) and NOC Sonangol—differ slightly from production-sharing contracts, with the latter usually awarded following formal licensing rounds, whereas the ExxonMobil agreement was an ad hoc deal. “The taxes and some terms are different,” says Adam Pollard, a senior upstream analyst at consultancy Wood Mackenzie. At a news conference announcing the deal, ANPG president Paulino Jeronimo predicted more contracts would soon be signed w