Qatar Petroleum has entered an agreement with Shell to become a partner in two offshore exploration blocks in Namibia.

State owned Qatar Petroleum (QP) will join hands with Anglo-Dutch multinational oil and gas giant Shell to take part in two ultra-deepwater exploration blocks off the coast of Namibia.

Under the agreement, which is subject to customary approvals, QP will hold a 45% participating interest in the PEL 39 exploration license for Block 2913A and Block 2914B, while operator Shell will hold a 45% interest.

The National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR) will hold the remaining 10% interest. The blocks are located in ultra-deep-water depths of about 2,500m.

This is QP’s second exploration license in Namibia.

In 2019, QP entered into agreements with French multinational integrated oil and gas company Total to secure a 30% share in exploration and production rights in two other blocks off the coast of Namibia.

“With this second exploration and production sharing agreement in Namibia, we are pleased to expand our exploration footprint in the country, and to further strengthen our presence in the southern Africa region,” said the Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President and CEO of QP Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi.

Working on these promising and prospective blocks with our valued long-term partner, Shell, is another step in our stride towards achieving our international growth strategy,” Al-Kaabi added.

Read also: QP to become sole owner of QatarGas after 25-year partnership

Last week, QP announced it would become the sole owner of QatarGas from next year.

QatarGas was previously jointly owned by QP, Total, ExxonMobil, Marubeni and Mitsui, under Qatargas Liquefied Natural Gas Company Limited joint venture, or QG1 – the pioneering LNG projects to be developed in Qatar.

The latest developments come as QP continues to expand its natural gas operations as the Gulf state gears up to return as the largest LNG producer by 2030.

Last month, the state owned corporation signed a $1.9 billion LNG deal with Samsung C&T Corporation as part of Qatar’s $28.7 billion North Field Expansion project, the world’s largest LNG project.

The project is set to raise Qatar’s LNG production capacity from 77 million metric tons per year to 110 million metric tons per year by 2025.

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