Senegal has become an oil-producing country after Australian group, Woodside Energy announced that production had begun in the West African country’s first offshore project, the Sangomar oil and gas field.
Though the country’s output will not be as huge as that of bigger producers such as continental powerhouses, Nigeria and Angola, it is expected that the industry will rake in at least a billion dollars in revenue annually over the next three decades
The deepwater project is targeting 100,000 barrels of oil per day production levels.
The floating facility, which also contains natural gas, is moored about 100 kilometres offshore and the vessel has a storage capacity of 1.3 million barrels, Woodside said.
“This is a historic day for Senegal and Woodside,” said the company’s Chief Executive, Meg O’Neill, calling the extraction of “first oil ” from the Sangomar field “a key milestone”.
Woodside has an 82-percent stake in the deepwater project with the remainder held by Senegal’s state-owned energy company Petrosen.
Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who came to power in April, has announced the renegotiation of oil and gas contracts as part of reforms he promised during the election campaign.
Senegal also has a liquefied natural gas project at its border with Mauritania and production there could begin in the third quarter.
The Greater Tortue Ahmeyim LNG project – which involves British energy giant BP, US firm Kosmos Energy, Mauritanian oil and gas company SHM and Petrosen – aims to produce around 2.5 million tonnes of LNG per year.