Work continues for IOCs in Mauritania despite coup

Aug. 15, 2005
International oil companies working in Mauritania have expressed confidence about operations in the country despite a bloodless military coup that toppled the government of former President Maaouya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya while he was abroad on Aug 3.

International oil companies working in Mauritania have expressed confidence about operations in the country despite a bloodless military coup that toppled the government of former President Maaouya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya while he was abroad on Aug 3.

Woodside Petroleum (Pty.) Ltd., the Australian resources group that is operator and 47% stakeholder in Chinguetti deepwater oil field, said company representatives in Mauritania’s capital city of Nouakchott had received assurances from leaders of the coup, operating under the name of the Military Council for Justice and Democracy (MCJD).

“We have their assurances that we can operate safely,” a Woodside spokesman said. “For us it is business as usual. We don’t get involved in politics in the country we operate in.”

Woodside said on Aug. 5 that it was continuing “normal drilling operations” at Chinguetti, and that it would start producing oil from the $625 million development by March 2006, despite the military uprising. “The project remains on track for production in March,” the company spokesman said.

A spokesman for Hardman Resources Ltd., which holds a 19% stake in Chinguetti field, said discussions with the new regime were being left to Woodside as operator.

Earlier, MCJD army officers who engineered the coup had issued a statement saying they would rule for as long as 2 years in the West African country, which hopes for production of 75,000 b/d of crude from Chinguetti field.

In its statement, the military council also offered assurances that it was committed to “respect all treaties and international conventions ratified by Mauritania.” The council named the current national police chief, Col. Ely Ould Mohamed Vall, as the country’s new leader.

Field details

Chinguetti field, 90 km west of Nouakchott, holds an estimated 100 million bbl of oil.

Other field participants include the Mauritanian government 12%, BG Group PLC 10.2%, Premier Oil PLC 8.1%, and ROC Oil Co. Ltd. 3.3%.

In June, groups of independents led by Woodside chose locations for the first three exploration wells to be drilled in the Atlantic off Mauritania this year.

Sotto and Colin are on high-risk, high-reward prospects in PSC Area A, and Espadon is on a medium-risk, moderate-reward prospect in PSC Area B near the Tiof discovery. Drilling was to start in July (OGJ Online, June 24, 2005).