12 September 2016, Dar es Salaam – The Democratic Republic of Congo has opened preliminary discussions with Tanzania over its crude oil prospects.
The talks are aimed at enabling Kinshasa to export its oil through the proposed pipeline system from Hoima in Uganda to the Tanga port in Tanzania.
The consultations began at the end of last month in Dar es Salaam between DRC’s Ministry of Hydrocarbons and its Tanzanian counterpart, according to Oil of DRCongo, a subsidiary of a Dutch natural resources conglomerate that is exploring for oil in eastern DRC.
Giuseppe Cicarelli, the subsidiary’s chief executive, said access to the least-cost option to get the crude into market is vital to the next round of investment the company is supposed to make.
This includes drilling two exploratory wells to physically establish results from 3D seismic surveys they conducted two years ago, and further investment for more 3D exploration works focused in the most complex structures identified.
“Oil of DRCongo is actively working to find viable solutions for the future evacuation of the crude oil from Block I & II to the Indian Ocean, which is key to the long term success of the project,” Mr Cicarelli said in a statement.