Angola is trying to streamline oil and gas administration, reports Maja Bovcon, senior Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft.
A recent decree by President Joao Lourenco “will most likely speed up the process of acquiring new oil blocks and the procurement of services and goods,” Bovcon writes in a risk note.
The legislation scraps the prequalification phase for oil and gas companies applying for acreage. In the past, allocation of blocks by state-owned Sonangol took more than a year.
The legislation also raises value thresholds above which purchases or contracts for services require public tender of approval by Sonangol.
The purchase threshold has been increased to $5 million from $750,000.
The threshold for contracts for services and goods has risen to $1 million from $250,000.
“The fact that the new legislation has been adopted as a presidential decree—which is faster than passing it through the parliament—indicates Lourenco’s commitment to speed up the reform of the oil and gas sector,” Bovcon writes.