According to sources close to the African oil sector and Reuters, Namibia is being considered for membership in OPEC+, an alliance that is facing withdrawals from countries such as Angola. If it succeeds, Namibia may become the continent’s fourth-largest oil exporter by 2030.
With estimates of 2.6 billion barrels, recent findings made by TotalEnergies and Shell might pave the way for production by 2030.
OPEC+’s initial goal is for Namibia to accede to its Charter of Cooperation so that it can have longer-term negotiations about energy markets. The African Energy Chamber’s executive chairman, NJ Ayuk, says Namibia would eventually like to be a full member of OPEC. But OPEC’s position is still unknown, and questions have not received a prompt answer.
Namibia showed interest in joining OPEC last year, but Minister Alweendo said in March that it wasn’t a top priority at the time. Discussions are anticipated to continue when OPEC is scheduled to address an energy meeting in Namibia in April. Namibia’s discovered reserves could yield 700,000 bpd by the next decade.
However, the possibility of more research implies that there is an opportunity for improvement. Disagreements on the output curbs implemented by OPEC+ led to Angola’s exit from the organisation in December.
