oleo e gas

Angola is a huge country present on the south-west coast of Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Oil and gas exploration started in the early 1900’s, but it wasn’t till 1955 that the first onshore commercial discovery was made at the Benfica field in the Kwanza basin. In 1966, the first offshore commercial discovery was made at the Limba field in the Lower Congo Basin. There was restricted exploration activity onshore due to the civil war that engulfed the country for a quarter century, and exploration efforts were more focused offshore.

More: GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND | RESERVES AND PRODUCTION | EXPLORATION | EXPLORATORY WELLS IN 2011 | Block 15/06 | Angola LNG II Upstream | Other Blocks | FUTURE

"Sonangol — Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola, E.P. — is the sole concessionaire for exploration of oil and gas exploration on the subsoil and continental shelf of Angola, and is responsible for the exploration, production, manufacturing, transportation and marketing of hydrocarbons in Angola. We operate in an efficient safe and transparent manner, and are committed to environmental protection. Our purpose is to promote the harmonious development of the country and reinforce sustainable use of hydrocarbon resources.

Established in 1976 from the nationalization of Angol, decree 52/76 instituted Sonangol U.E.E as a state owned company whose mission was the management of hydrocarbon resource exploration in Angola. Despite having the government as the sole shareholder, Sonangol has always been governed as a private company and is under strict performance standards to ensure efficiency and productivity.

In this context, Sonangol works to become a reference in the international market and in particular the African market, and to fulfill the dual task of presenting itself as an integrated and competitive company and act as a moving force in Angola. To this end, as a company that does business in a market economy Sonangol fulfills fundamental assumptions such as investment in technology, orientation towards the customer, enforce strict ethical conduct, engagement with communities in which it operates and responsibility in relation to health, safety and the environment.

Sonangol's activities include exploration, development, marketing, production, transportation and refining of hydrocarbons and its derivatives. Those activities can be performed independently or in association with other companies — national or foreign. In addition, Sonangol assumes, in full, its role as a public company whose achievements should flow directly in favor of sustainable development of its country.
With this goal in mind, Sonangol is oriented towards:

diversification of business in order to reduce dependence on fluctuations of oil prices;
the development of refining, marketing and distribution of oil derivatives as competitive business;
establishment of LNG related activities and the development of business in the petrochemicals industry; and
generating options for repositioning the support business of Sonangol."