South Sudan invites companies for oil discovery

By Huseyin Erdogan

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AA) - South Sudan's Petroleum Minister Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth in his announcement Wednesday welcomed investors to the country to participate in direct negotiations for its available four oil and gas acreages.

"Our message to global energy investors continues to be that South Sudan is pro-business and open for business," Gatkuoth said at the Africa Oil and Power Conference 2017, of which Anadolu Agency is the Global Communication Partner.

South Sudan currently produces 130,000 barrels per day and plans to double its total oil production by 2018. It can produce as much as 500,000 barrels per day, Gatkuouth said.

The minister underlined the huge demand for downstream, distribution and storage in the region, adding the country planned to build four new refineries with a total capacity of 127,000 barrels per day.

"We want to attract companies that share our ambition to develop resources quickly. We look forward to continue engaging with interested parties," he said.

The ministry of petroleum is also conducting ongoing negotiations with a group led by French oil and gas company Total on oil and gas blocks B1 and B2, he said. He added that Tullow Oil and the Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) were also involved in discussions for B1 and B2.

"We must explore more, if we do not explore we cannot produce," he said. "We can work together in a win-win situation."