The announcement was made by Senior Geoscientist and Joint Team Manager at TGS Andrea Maioli on October 1 during a pre-conference technical program at the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) 2024 conference, taking place in Luanda. Titled Maximizing Angola’s Onshore Potential: Kwanza Basin Prospectivity Overview, the workshop offered technical insight into the underexplored basin.

The data reprocessing will feature improved frequency content, improved imaging of faulting and stratigraphy as well as an improved velocity model for the Angolan basins.

“At the onshore Kwanza Basin 182 exploration and appraisal wells have been drilled, resulting in the discovery of 11 oil fields and 2 small gas fields,” Maioli stated, adding, “We have a lot of data thanks to our partnership with ANPG.”

According to Maioli, the onshore basin contains proven petroleum systems and a demonstrated continuation of the well-understood offshore systems. Meanwhile, it was noted that, while well-understood, the offshore Kwanza Basin is highly underexplored, with only 100 wells drilled offshore in an area covering 105,000km2.

Early exploration de-risked proven pre- and post-salt petroleum plays in the Kwanza Basin offer accessible and low-cost opportunities for E&P firms. Data sets for the basin were updated in 2010 and 2011 when 2,581km of high-quality 2D seismic data was acquired.

It was also noted that opportunities exist to enter the acreage through the permanent offer regime and upcoming 2025 licensing round. Angola’s 2025 limited tender will feature Block 22, Block 35, Block 37, Block 38 and Block 26. Additionally, the country has four onshore blocks available; 11 blocks on permanent offer and five marginal fields ready for exploration – which are situated in producing blocks with proven systems.

The AOG 2024 pre-conference takes place today in Luanda, serving as a prelude to the main program on October 2-3. The pre-conference program features a series of technical workshops and presentations covering various aspects of the oil and gas value chain in Angola.