Africa Oil Corp (TSX:AOI) announced that it achieved notable milestones at its two main assets offshore Namibia and Nigeria during the third quarter.
“The Venus-1X testing program achieved positive flow rates for the world-class Venus light oil discovery offshore Namibia, and I am encouraged to note the public statements by the operator, TotalEnergies, that there will be a development on the Venus field,” CEO Roger Tucker highlighted in a statement.
Tucker also confirmed that the conversion of OML 127 to Nigeria’s new Petroleum Industry Act regime by its 50% investee Prime Oil & Gas Coöperatief U.A. reduces the effective tax rate for the Agbami field from 50% to 30%.
“Our Nigerian assets continue to perform well and we received a dividend for $62.5 million during the period,” the CEO said.
“We also saw the first quarterly increase in the average daily production since the second quarter 2021, as the Egina infill drilling program offset the field’s production decline.”
For 3Q, the company reported operating income of $47.1 million or $0.10 per share down from $70.5 million or $0.15 per share in the year-ago quarter.
This includes income from its 50% investment in Prime of $57.1 million. Prime’s revenue decreased by $125.7 million year-over-year in 3Q due to a $76.1 million decrease in oil revenue driven by lower liftings.
Looking ahead at the remainder of 2023, Africa Oil said it believes the most impactful catalysts are the appraisal and exploration results from Block 2913B (PEL 56) located offshore Namibia and operated by TotalEnergies. This includes flow test results from the Venus-1A appraisal well and the outcome of the Mangetti-1X exploration well.
The company holds an effective interest of 6.2% in the license.
Source : Proactive
