Zenith Energy, a Canadian-based international independent oil and gas company with exploration and development assets in Africa, has filed a proposal with the government of Benin to operate the country’s largest oilfield: Block-1.
With the proposal, Zenith Energy is seeking an initial nine-year license to operate Block-1 which is located in the Gulf of Guinea and comprises the Seme oilfield – the country’s largest oilfield with an estimated 28 million barrels of recoverable oil and 428 billion cubic feet of natural gas reserves.
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Discovered in 1968 by Union Oil and comprising 23 wells, Block 1 has produced up to 22 million barrels of oil at around 2,000 barrels of oil per day during its 14 years of operation before being shut in 1998 due to low oil prices which resulted in the block being deemed uncommercial. Now, by investing in the block and leveraging modern 3D seismic and drilling technologies, Zenith Energy says it is confident it will be able to bring back production in the block.
Andrea Cattaneo, Chief Executive of Zenith, said, “We are delighted to have submitted this offer for what is an extremely exciting opportunity in Benin, representing the largest and most prospective oilfield in the country. Block-1 has significant untapped, independently assessed oil and gas reserves, a proven history of material oil production, and existing field infrastructure. These key qualities make it a potentially highly enriching addition to our portfolio and fully satisfy the key criteria defining our growth strategy.”
Leveraging existing wells, a few of which were last installed by South Atlantic Petroleum in 2009, and production facilities – installed in 2014 and 2016 – Zenith Energy is targeting to take advantage of the current and anticipated increases in global oil prices to boost Benin’s energy monetization for Gross Domestic Product growth.
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“Benin is a stable and attractive jurisdiction for foreign investment, and we look forward with great enthusiasm to working closely with the local authorities to ensure we achieve a fruitful and enduring partnership in the event our offer is accepted,” Cattaneo continued.
