Azule Energy Holdings Ltd.—a 50:50 joint venture of Eni SPA and bp PLC—has commissioned the onshore natural gas treatment plant to handle production from the first phase of the New Gas Consortium (NGC), Angola’s first dedicated non-associated gas development project.
Located at Soyo in Angola’s northern province of Zaire and operated by Azule Energy, the NGC gas plant is equipped with capacities to process 400 MMcfd of gas and 20,000 b/d of condensate from two wellhead platforms in NGC’s Quiluma and Moboquerio shallow-water offshore gas fields, Azule Energy and Eni said in separate statements.
Started for construction in October 2023, the new plant began processing its first gas volumes 24 months later during November 2025, putting the project 6 months ahead of its originally planned schedule, Azule Energy said.
Additional potential gas feedstock for the onshore gas plant could also come from NGC Phase 1’s Blocks 2, 3, and 15/14 areas, according to Azule Energy’s website.
The companies said formal commissioning of the new plant—which connects directly to Angola LNG Ltd.’s Soyo 1.1-bcfd gas plant that produces up to 5.2 million tonnes/year (tpy) of LNG—marks a major step in Angola’s plan to expand non-associated gas production and supply feedstock to Angola LNG.
Gas volumes processed at NGC’s plant are delivered to Angola LNG’s plant for export and domestic consumption, with Angola LNG marketing the gas as LNG with condensates sold directly by NGC owners, which include Azule Energy (37.4%), TotalEnergies SE subsidiary TotalEnergies EP Angola Development Gaz (11.8%), Chevron Corp. subsidiary Cabinda Gulf Oil Co. Ltd. (31%), and Sociedade Nacional de Combustíveis de Angola EP (Sonangol) subsidiary Sonangol Pesquisa e Produção SA (19.8%).
With the associated gas project now online, “Angola [has taken] a decisive step toward establishing itself as a strategic force in the global natural gas market, [and] Azule Energy is proud to be the company leading this path with the NGC development completion and dedicated gas exploration activity,” said Adriano Mongini, Azule Energy’s chief executive officer.
Additionally, the project supports Angola’s domestic energy diversification and responsible resource development to enable growth in other key sectors, including fertilizer production for agriculture, according to Azure Energy.
"Non-associated gas deposits guarantee additional production than relying solely on the gas that is associated with oil,” said Angolan President João Lourenço said during a Nov. 27 ceremony to inaugurate the new plant.
Noting strong global demand for natural gas as a cleaner, more competitively priced option to traditional diesel, Lourenço expressed his hope that “other developments like [NGC] will come along, which [would be] promising for the Angolan people and the national economy.”
While Lourenço confirmed apparent plans were already under way for construction of a fertilizer production unit that would use feedstock sourced from NGC’s new gas plant, the participating companies have yet to reveal further details on the proposed fertilizer project.
