Nigerian firm signs deal to develop two Venezuelan gas fields

By Abubakar Yunusa

Veneoranto Petroleum Limited, a Nigerian oil firm, has signed an agreement with Venezuelan state-owned PDVSA to develop two natural gas prospects.
Veneoranto is a subsidiary established in Venezuela by Atlas Oranto, a Nigerian company in the oil and natural gas area.
The agreement includes the technical and economic feasibility of the development of the Barracuda Area, located in territorial waters and the surface of the Gulf of Venezuela.
The also includes technical economic feasibility for the development of the Boca de Serpiente area in the northeast of the state of Delta Amacuro.
According to teleSUR, a Latin American multimedia platform, agreements will be executed by both parties.
The news platform said the signing ceremony, which took place on August 8, had in attendance President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela, Pedro Tellechea, Venezuelan minister of people’s power of petroleum; and Arthur Eze, Nigerian representative of Veneoranto Petroleum Limited.
Speaking at the event, Eze said Africa is ready to invest in Venezuela.
He also urged Maduro to “continue fighting as Hugo Chávez did.
“Africa is happy and knows a lot about Venezuela. We want to come here to invest, may God bless and bless his people,” he said.
On his part, the minister of power said both areas total 30 trillion cubic feet (tcf), noting that the agreements are exploratory to be able to certify those two deposits.
“This will continue to position Venezuela as one of the gas exporting countries,” Tellechea said.
In his remarks, Maduro described the agreement as “joining forces to dream together and build together towards the future”.
“I am very pleased that the investment process for gas production from the Gulf of Venezuela, from the Deltana platform is being accelerated,” the president said.
“Two gas powers from South America, the Caribbean and the world, and we will soon be exporting gas to Africa.”
The offshore prospect called Barracuda in the Gulf of Venezuela, is estimated to have reserves of 20tcf of natural gas and about 2 trillion barrels of condensate.