European Firms to Tackle Sudan’s Block E

Two new companies have entered the Sudanese exploration game, Star Petroleum and AGR Group company Hamla. The two European firms have signed a deal with the government to explore on Block E.

The block covers 50,000 sq km and traverses over five Sudanese states; the Northern Bahr el-Ghazal, the Western Bahr al-Ghazal, Lakes, and Warrap in the south, and South Darfur in north Sudan.

The agreement was signed on August 6.

“Come and invest in Sudan, there are many professional people and great opportunities this is our message to all of the European companies," said Farshad Zandi of Star Petroleum. Star, based in Luxembourg, holds a 75% share in the block. Hamla holds 5% and the remaining 20% is shared between the country’s two national firms, Sudapet and Nilepet.

Star Petroleum already operates in the Caspian Sea, Yemen, and Iran and hopes to move into Angola, Zandi told Reuters, adding it had set aside $200 million to invest in Sudan.

“We don’t have any information on this block yet but we heard that it’s a very promising block -- we know this because around us there was more than 10 million barrels discovered,” Zandi said of neighboring oil blocks.

Drilling is expected to start following the initial three-year exploration period. “The contract will last for 20 years with a potential renewal period of 5 extra years with a six-year exploration period at the beginning,” he said.