Participant in project involving Lukoil offshore Cameroon expecting FID late 2024
MOSCOW. March 30 (Interfax) -Bowleven plc, a participant in the Etinde project involving Russia's Lukoil offshore Cameroon, expects a final investment decision or FID for the project will be reached no earlier than the end of 2024.
"Assuming Perenco and New Age's transaction completes in June 2023, Bowleven estimates that FID could be in late 2024, subject to Perenco's initial review of the Etinde development options," the British company said in a report.
"Etinde operations are currently in a 'care and maintenance' mode with limited ongoing activity other than New Age's maintenance of the Cameroon project office. This activity level is expected to continue until the conditions precedent to the completion of the disposal of New Age's Etinde operating interest to Perenco are satisfied and regulatory approval is provided," it said.
New Age (African Global Energy) Limited in June 2022 signed a final conditional agreement with a division of Perenco S.A. on transferring the share in the Etinde joint venture. The 460 sq. km plot is located in the Gulf of Guinea, 20 km from the coast, in close proximity to the border with Equatorial Guinea, and the sea depth within the block varies from 10 m to 100 m. The project is being implemented under a production sharing agreement signed on December 22, 2008. As 20-year license to develop Etinde was issued in July 2014.
Front End Engineering and Design has shown that developing the field based on selling gas exclusively on the domestic market, with re-injection and processing of excess feedstock, does not generate a sufficient return on investment for the JV partners in the current market conditions. Alternatively, processing Etinde gas at the Marathon Oil facilities on Bioko Island in Equatorial Guinea has been considered, with the project participants recognizing this option as preferable and initiating negotiations with Marathon Oil. The latter owns a 63% stake in the Alba field PSA and an 80% stake in Block D on the Equatorial Guinea shelf, as well as a 52% stake in the Alba LPG-production plant on Bioko Island. Moreover, Marathon Oil owns 60% of EGHholdings, an LNG plant with capacity of 3.7 million tonnes per year, and 45% of AMPCO, a methanol plant, which are also located on Bioko Island.
Lukoil said recently that is and its partners in the Etinde project were considering producing liquefied natural gas at a floating plant.
Lukoil joined the Etinde deep-water project offshore Cameroon in 2014. The participants are New Age Ltd. with a 30% stake, acting as the operator; Lukoil with a 30% stake; EurOil Ltd., an indirectly wholly owned subsidiary of Bowleven plc, incorporated in Cameroon with 20%; and SNH with 20%.