Post #137

🇦🇴 Luanda's Greed for Oil Takes It to (S)hell 🛢 Angola’s upstream regulator, ANPG, says it will sign an exclusive agreement with Shell on November 3 to explore and potentially develop several offshore and ultra-deepwater oil prospects. ⏩That is, Angola wants oil here and now, without running lengthy license rounds.⏪ 🔸 In late 2023, the country felt constrained by OPEC’s 1.1 million barrels per day quota and said farewell to the organization in January 2024. Ironically, output then dropped even further below the OPEC-suppresses-us days. 🔸 While the reason of Angola's embarassing position lied in constant underinvestment, especially in costly, high-risk exploration, now Luanda seems ready to bring investors back by hook or crook, planning to bounce back to 1.1M barrels per day output by 2027. However, what if the prices plunge by then? 🤨 🔸 The problem is not that Shell gets exploration permits without contest, but the fact that the oil-dependent economy seems unwilling to give up its dependence. Angola, whose exports rely on oil and gas for nearly 95%, sells almost all of its oil crude, having only built its first oil refinery in 50 years with the capacityof neglectable 30,000 barrels per day in September 2025. For a country facing such oil dependence, fast-tracking proper procedures may feel natural - but Luanda clearly needs diversification more than another dash for oil ambitions. Devils Below