Uganda announces it will issue new oil exploration licenses in the next fiscal year
The finance minister announced on Wednesday that Uganda will issue new oil exploration licenses during the fiscal year 2025/2026, which runs from July to June. This is to boost investment in the sector as well as the overall economic growth. Early last year, the last licensing round for this east African nation launched in 2019 ended. The country awarded the final two blocks of the five offered. He said that in order to achieve greater investments and growth overall, the government will issue more exploration licenses.
South Sudan to Offer Oil Blocks for 2020
South Sudan plans to offer 14 oil blocks to exploration companies in a licensing round by the first quarter 2020, its oil minister said on Tuesday, switching from its previous method of direct negotiations with explorers.The country gets almost all its revenue from oil and has boosted output, now at 180,000 barrels per day, as it struggles to rebuild its shattered economy after a five-year civil war."We are inviting all our investors that wanted to invest in South Sudan to come and move onto those blocks…
Kenya's National Oil, Schlumberger Ink Field Development Deal
Kenya's National Oil Corporation and U.S. oil services company Schlumberger have agreed to finalise a field development plan on behalf of the government for oil blocks in the northwest of the country. The East African nation discovered commercial oil reserves in its Lokichar basin in 2012. National Oil said in a statement seen by Reuters on Friday that the agreement with Schlumberger would create a development blueprint for the field in the next year. "This FDP (field development plan) will provide the government with an independent view of the development of the Lokichar oil discoveries…
Kenya: Major Wind Power Line to Be Ready in 3 Months
A power line linking a 310 megawatt (MW) wind power plant to Kenya's national grid, delayed by landowners' compensation demands among other issues, is expected to be ready in the next three months, the energy minister said on Thursday. Kenya relies heavily on geothermal and hydro power for its electricity, providing the bulk of the country's total 2,341 MW output. Wind power provides about 25 MW. The construction of the 266-mile (428-km), 400-kilovolt power line from the Lake Turkana Wind Power project…
Kenya Creates 17 New Oil Exploration Blocks
Kenya has created an extra 17 new oil exploration blocks, bringing its total to 63 and aims to auction them in a licensing round in 2017, Kenyan newspapers quoted Ministry of Energy and Petroleum saying on Saturday. British explorer Tullow Oil and partner Africa Oil first struck oil in Lokichar in northwest Kenya in 2012. The recoverable reserves are an estimated 750 million barrels of crude. Since the discovery, interest from explorers seeking blocks in Kenya increased. Privately…
Kenya Signs $408 mln Loan with Japan for Geothermal Plant
Kenya and Japan on Wednesday signed a 46 billion yen ($408 million) loan agreement to go towards building a 140 megawatt (MW) geothermal power plant that is expected to be operational within the next two years, the two governments said. The plant, know as Olkaria V, will be built by Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen), which has said it expects to begin construction in July, with the plant arriving on the grid by the end of 2018. The plant is part of KenGen's plans to add 720 MW of electricity - most of it from geothermal sources - to the grid between this year and 2020…
Africa Oil: Low Oil Price Won't Cause Major Delay to Kenya Project
Falling world oil prices will not cause a major delay to plans to begin oil production in northwest Kenya, Africa Oil Corp's chief executive said on Thursday. Keith Hill said the biggest hurdle was finalising construction plans for a crude oil pipeline. Africa Oil and its partners aim to announce a final investment decision for production in early 2017. "The current oil price has indeed put pressure on the project, but we do not believe this low price is sustainable. We do not see a major delay to the project as a result of the oil price…
Uganda, Tanzania to Study Possibility of Crude Pipeline
AMPALA, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Uganda and Tanzania have signed an agreement to explore the possibility of building a crude oil pipeline between the two countries, Uganda's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development said on Monday. "The (agreement) creates a working framework for the potential development of a crude export pipeline from Hoima to Tanga Port of Tanzania," the ministry said in a statement. "The objective is to select a route that will result in the lowest unit transportation cost that constitutes the most viable option for the crude export pipeline," it said.
Kenya Coal Power Plant Delayed
A plan to start building Kenya's first coal-fired power plant in October has been delayed as the consortium involved awaits a government plan to resettle people on the coastal site, the group's chief executive said on Monday. The Kenyan and Chinese venture plans to build the 1,000 megawatt (MW) plant in the east African nation that now relies heavily on renewable energy. It is part of a plan to boost Kenya's installed capacity to about 6,700 MW by 2017 from about 2,500 MW.
Kenya, Uganda Settle on Crude Pipeline Route
Kenya and Uganda have reached a final decision on the route for a crude pipeline linking their newly found oil fields to the Kenyan coast, an important step for oil firms to make a final investment decision, the countries' presidents said on Monday. "The two heads of state agreed on the use of the northern route, that is Hoima - Lokichar - Lamu for the development of the crude oil pipeline," Uganda's Yoweri Museveni and Kenya's Uhuru Kenyatta said in a statement. (Reporting by Elias Biryabarama; Editing by George Obulutsa)
Kenya's KenolKobil H1 2015 Pretax Profit Rises Up
Kenyan oil marketer KenolKobil said on Monday its first half 2015 pretax profit had risen 69 percent to $13.36 million as the cost of servicing its loans fell. It said in a statement total sales fell to 34.9 billion shillings from 43.2 billion shillings, while the cost of sales dropped to 31.9 billion shillings from 40.63 billion shillings. KenolKobil, which also operates in Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Zambia, Ethiopia, Burundi, Mozambique and Democratic Republic of Congo, said finance costs fell to 379.5 million shillings from 669.33 million shillings.
Kenya Proposes Rules to Require Local Stake in Oil Exploration Firms
Kenya has proposed rules requiring oil exploration firms to give local investors a 5 percent stake and use local suppliers and staff for their services to get a bigger share of earnings from the new sector. East Africa has become a hot spot for oil and gas exploration in recent years, spurred by new finds, but Kenya has yet to update its legal framework for the sector. Tullow Oil and Africa Oil have estimated discoveries of 600 million barrels to the northwest of Kenya, and plan to submit their development plans to the government by late 2015 prior to commercial production.
Kenya Says no Power Price Rises Expected Due to Drought
Kenya will not raise electricity costs despite a drought that is affecting water levels in its hydropower dams because it is generating more power from geothermal steam, the government said on Tuesday. Endowed with vast geothermal energy resources in the Rift Valley, the east African nation wants to expand its generation capacity by 5,000 megawatts (MW) by 2017 from about 2,152 MW now, to lower tariffs and cut costs of doing business. Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir said despite the dry weather…
South Sudan Oil Revenue at $3.38 bln, Hit by Conflict and Price Falls
South Sudan's oil revenue last year was hit by reduced output because of conflict in the African republic and the rapid decline in oil prices, petroleum minister Stephen Dhieu Dau said in a statement seen by Reuters on Saturday. Oil is the main source of cash for South Sudan, but total oil income was $3.38 billion last year from the sale of 36.6 million barrels as output was hit by the fighting that began in December 2013 in the wake of a power struggle between President Salva Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar.
Kenya Power to Improve Shaky Power Grid
Kenya Power plans to spend 8.7 billion shillings ($96.6 million) on new power distribution stations to improve electricity supply aimed at curbing chronic power shortages that companies say have discouraged investments. Kenya Power, the country's main electricity transmission company, said in a statement on Friday it plans to build 36 new substations, with 10 of them being put up in the coast region. Kenya's government has said it aims to boost power production capacity in East Africa's biggest economy by an extra 5…
Africa Oilfield Logistics Eyes Nairobi Exchange Listing
London-listed support services company Africa Oilfield Logistics plans to list its shares on Kenya's Nairobi Securities Exchange, it said on Monday. The company, which is already listed on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market (AIM), will sell up to 10 percent of its enlarged share capital via the listing and a private placement in Kenya. Africa Oilfield Logistics listing will be on the Nairobi exchange's Growth Enterprise Market - which is aimed at small firms.
KenGen Eyes JV Partners for Geothermal Plants
KenGen is Kenya's biggest power generator; geothermal help cut reliance on costly diesel. Businesses say high prices make Kenya uncompetitive. State-controlled Kenya Electricity Generating Co (KenGen) said on Monday it wanted to team up with private investors for the first time to build geothermal power plants that would come on stream by 2016. KenGen's plan is part of Kenya's ambition to add 5,000 megawatts (MW) of capacity by 2017, against a current total of 1,664 MW, as it tries to tackle power shortages and high prices holding back business in the east African nation.
Kenya's President Approves 5% Capital Gains Tax
Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta has signed into law a 5 percent capital gains tax that investors say could affect investment in property, equities and the country's nascent oil and mining sectors. The finance bill approved by parliament in late August will take effect on Jan. 1, changing how taxes are applied in East Africa's biggest economy, the presidency said in a statement late on Sunday. Kenya's government is trying to raise funds for development projects to spur economic growth and create jobs, but analysts say such taxes could deter foreign investors.
Tanzania to Double Power Supply
Tanzania aims to double its power production to 3,000 megawatts by 2016 at a cost of around $1.21 billion to meet rising demand by using its vast natural gas supplies, an official at the state-run utility said on Wednesday. Businesses say frequent power outages now are hurting productivity and are a barrier to economic growth. Decklan Mhaiki, deputy managing director for investments at Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO), said the country's installed capacity stood at 1,500 megawatts (MW), against a peak power demand of 900 MW.
Kenyan Consortium to Build 1,000-MW Coal Plant
A consortium led by two Kenyan firms won a government tender to build a 1,000-MW, coal-fired power plant, company officials said on Tuesday, part of moves to satisfy rising demand for energy in East Africa's biggest economy. Kenya suffers from regular blackouts due to supply shortfalls and an aging grid, forcing most businesses and wealthy people to have stand-by generators. Businesses cite frequent power outages as a barrier to economic growth. Centum Investment and its local partner Gulf Energy have joined forces with foreign firms China Huadian Corporation Power Operation Company…
