_____ The ocean basin located in front of the Canary Islands and that runs from north to south the neighboring African countries of Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea Bissau and Guinea Conakry (MSGBC) is home to large oil and gas reserves.
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This has been confirmed by seismic exploration and drilling drilling conducted in recent years in an offshore extension of 230 thousand square kilometers. This reality represents a great occasion for the Canary Islands. And an extraordinary opportunity for the Port of La Luz and Las Palmas that we cannot miss.
Businessmen and public administrations must join forces urgently so that the synergies of economic activity and of generation of employment and wealth that will be generated in the coming months have an impact on the Canarian market. This new offshore industrial activity, led by large multinationals in the oil & gas sector, will need infrastructure and land services that Gran Canaria can offer with absolute professionalism and solvency, with internationally certified port services and in a geographically African environment but with the legal advantages , health, social and fiscal of European rank enjoyed by the island.
This new economic situation is a great opportunity for the Port of Las Palmas because the ports of these African countries have neither the organization, nor the capacity nor the necessary infrastructure to deal with guarantees that, according to all forecasts, are It comes over in the short and medium term.
The extensive experience of the Port of Las Palmas positions it as the ideal enclave in the Mid-Atlantic to serve as logistical support for the offshore industry. It is, as we know, an enclosure with magnificent shipyards and more than eighty companies in the sector of naval repairs grouped in the Maritime Cluster of the Canary Islands. It has maritime lines that connect us weekly with these West African countries (MSC, Boluda, etc.), in addition to accumulating for decades an invaluable experience in loading and unloading large equipment of all kinds necessary to undertake the extraction of black gold and gas The extractive activity in the MSGBC zone begins next year.
Personally, I have had the privilege and pleasure of knowing on the ground and in some detail the African ports near the Canary Islands. Except for Dakar, in Senegal, none of them is prepared to face this challenge.
The Mauritanian ports, although they try to prepare themselves, will need many years to be able to fend for themselves. The Port of Banjul, in Gambia, where I was barely a couple of months ago, is absolutely collapsed. The Port of Bissau, in addition to being very small, has some draft problems that make it inoperative for such an adventure. Nor does the Port of Guinea Conakry currently have adequate infrastructure to meet the requirements of this blessing that has fallen from the sky with the discovery of hydrocarbon reserves in its territorial sea.
If we go country by country we can point out the following: Senegal has been, for obvious reasons, the most active in this ocean basin, having opened in 2018 the National Institute of Petroleum, whose objective is to train its nationals to participate in this industry and that Not all be technical expatriates. The country with the highest foreign investment in this field has had the two biggest discoveries in the SNE offshore field, by Cairn Energy, and in the field called Grand Tortue / Ahmeyin (GTA) with gas discovered by Cosmos Energy.
The SNE field is in its first phase of development by the joint venture consisting of Cairn Energy, Woodside Energy, the Australian Far Ltd and Petrosen (Senegal National Petroleum Company). The GTA offshore gas field, located on the border between Senegal and Mauritania, is owned by the joint venture formed by BP, Kosmos Energy and Petrosen on the Senegalese side, and the Mauritanian Society D'hydrocarbures et du Patrimoine Minier (SMHPM) on the Mauritanian side. In 2019, apart from new potential discoveries, the country's long-awaited new oil code and its regulation and the investment decision making of these companies in both fields came to light.
In Mauritania, apart from the GTA gas field, where four of the six blocks are located in Mauritanian waters, in 2018 two great players entered to play: Exxon Mobil and Shell. ExxonMobil announced its largest global offshore 3D seismic study program and Shell acquired two exploratory blocks in July 2018. TOTAL was also strengthened with licenses for two new blocks in the area.
The Gambia, despite optimistic news of a great discovery of offshore oil in May 2018, these have not been confirmed by the owner of the blocks: the Australian Far Ltd .. However, the company sees great indications of good results in a near future in its field near the Senegalese SNE, but in Gambia waters, in addition to the entry of Petronas with new licenses.
Bissau, given its limited know-how and financial capacity, reached a cooperation agreement with Senegal, called Agence de Cooperation et de Gestion between Senegal and Guinea Bissau, which will help it to enter the sector, and Far Ltd. and the Swedish Svenska Petroleum plans to start drilling soon in Bissau waters.
Guinea Conakry, although it has been mostly concentrated in its mining resources, with the creation in May 2018 of its Ministry of Petroleum has begun efforts to enter the distribution of this succulent cake. The French TOTAL negotiates agreements with the Guinean state company ONAP (Office National des Petroles) to begin the polls.
While it is true that there have also been failed attempts, where only water has been found under the seabed, we cannot ignore this more than presumed immense business potential in the oil and gas sector that is very close to us, with a Port of La Luz and Las Palmas expectant and ready to give service.
We are facing a great occasion. Let's not let it pass ...
FAR Price at posting:
5.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
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