Equatorial Guinea
A unique success story
The profitable petroleum industry is financing the country's infrastructure and social programs
Okume Complex, operated by Hess Corporation, achieved its first production in December 2006, in early 2008 reached 40 000 b/d and is expected to reach a net peak production rate of 80 000 b/d in 2011.
Like most success stories, the tale of oil in the 10,811-sq-mile country of Equatorial Guinea didn't happen overnight. A string of exploration failures left Equatorial Guinea standing apart from its neighbors with no proven reserves. Walter International, an American company, continued exploring and located hydrocarbons in 1989. In just 15 years, Equatorial Guinea went from small production to become one of the major crude oil producers in the Gulf of Guinea. As of January 2009, Equatorial Guinea had posted proven reserves of 1.1 billion barrels of oil. It's been said that the country's history can be divided into two periods: pre-oil and post-oil. President Obiang has credited the petroleum industry for the country's economic prosperity, which has funded projects like building a national electrical system and supplying drinking water and other major infrastructure projects. The government is using its oil wealth as a springboard into the future. "We're aware that oil is a finite resource and that it won't always be there, which is why the government is working to diversify the sources of economic growth, to build up the tourism, trade and industrial sectors by constructing hotels, maintaining our forests and wildlife, and encouraging local and foreign investors to open businesses that can sustain our economy, with the goal of minimizing our dependence on oil revenue", Obiang has said.
The third largest crude oil producer in Sub-Saharan Africa
Within a decade and a half, Equatorial Guinea went from a country with scant 5000b/d petroleum output to a respectable 350,000b/d production level. Somewhere along the way, Equatorial Guinea surpassed the output levels of other Sub-Saharan Africa countries to become the No.3 producer in the region, after Angola and Nigeria. In all, the Gulf of Guinea supplies 25% of the US energy demand. But it wasn't always that way. Oil exploration of Equatorial Guinea, the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa, started before the country gained independence from Spain in 1968. Exploratory efforts were met with no real success until Walter International spun the drill bit and found success at the Alba field, where production began in 1991. Walter eventually sold its stake to CMS Nomeco, which determined Alba was larger than originally thought. Production increased to 15,000b/d, and Marathon Oil bought the asset in 2001.
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