With growing interest and investment from India, China and international oil companies operating in Africa, there has been increased competition for exploration acreage in recent years, says Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) in its latest oil and gas review entitled: ‘From promise to performance’. “As some of the traditional multinationals divest from areas in Africa, opportunities for new independents will emerge, causing the trading mix and diversity of the companies trading in Africa to change. This will cause established energy companies to become more agile in order to respond to greater competition and emerging trends,” said Uyi Akpata, PwC African energy leader. The review commented that exploration and refining capacity in Africa would continue to increase, in contrast with what is happening in the developing world, as countries strive for a greater security of supply and increase export earnings from the sale of refined products. At the same time, uncertain regulatory frameworks, political intervention and the nationalisation of resources will be key issues that will affect the oil and gas industry in the coming years, stated the report. Overall, the booming oil and gas industry is seeing greater interest in all regions, including frontier states such as Namibia, Togo, Liberia and areas where exploration and production had been diminishing over the last few years. This includes countries such as Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and South Sudan. The crown jewels are, however, the new players on the east coast, particularly Mozambique and Tanzania.
