Sonangol and China’s CNCEC Forge MoU for Lobito Refinery
Angola’s national oil company (NOC) Sonangol signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China National Chemical Engineering (CNCEC) in Beijing for the construction of the Lobito Refinery.
The MoU will see the parties raise the required financing for the project and could potentially lead to a contract for the construction of this important infrastructure by the Chinese company.
The MoU was signed by Sonangol Chairman Gaspar Martins, on behalf of the NOC, on June 6 in the Chinese capital Beijing, and in the presence of the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas Diamantino Azevedo and the President of the National Oil and Gas Agency of Angola, Paulino Jerónimo. The refinery is expected to come online as early as 2026.
The Lobito Refinery represents one of the most important infrastructure projects in the energy sector in the Republic of Angola and will have the capacity to produce up to 200,000 barrels of refined crude per day (bpd).
This will allow the Angolan State to become self-sufficient regarding refined fuels such as gasoline, diesel, Liquefied Petroleum Gas or Jet Fuel A1, and will additionally enable the country to export and supply neighboring countries.
Incidentally, the corporate structure that owns the unit is still open, with 30% held by Sonangol and the remaining 70% in private ownership.
The Zambian government will have a 15% stake as the country will be connected to the Lobito Refinery through a dedicated oil and gas pipeline.
Angola is additionally building two more refineries, a facility in Soyo with a production capacity of up to 100,000 bpd, and a facility in Cabinda which will produce 60,000 bpd.
With these new infrastructures, the Republic of Angola, in addition to becoming self-sufficient in terms of the population’s needs, will be able to reduce imports while establishing itself as a regional energy hub with the capacity to export fuel and gas to the Southern African community.
Increasing capacity in the downstream sector of Angola will be one of the central themes of the upcoming Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) 2023 Conference and Exhibition, set to be held on the 13-14 September in Luanda.
During this key event, energy experts, executives and high-level government representatives from the Angolan, African and global energy sector will participate.
The two-day conference will see panel discussions and presentations focused on the many opportunities that exist in Angola, not only in oil and gas industry but also in renewable energies, services and the application of new technologies, with participants exploring the many ways of making the energy sector profitable and enabling greater participation of Angolan businessmen and entrepreneurs.
