The Democratic Republic of Congo is close to reaching an agreement with neighboring Angola on one of the offshore blocks between the countries that have been the subject of a 50-year dispute, the Congolese Oil Minister told Reuters.
Under the terms of the production sharing agreement proposed by Angola and Chevron, each country would take a 30% stake in Block 14, with operator Chevron taking the remaining 40%, said Didier Budimbu in an interview with Reuters in Paris.
A successful deal could help ease tensions between the two countries over the blocks, which have long been controlled by Angola. Angolan state oil company Sonangol and Chevron did not respond to requests for comment.
« Nous devons nous revoir très bientôt et les choses peuvent aller très vite », a déclaré Budimbu. « Les deux pays auront environ 30%, et 40% pour l’opérateur. »
He said discussions were continuing on other blocks straddling the two countries on the Atlantic coast. Budimbu said that as part of the agreement, Angolan state oil company Sonangol would cancel a $200 million debt owed to it by Congolese state oil company Sonahydroc.