BP has agreed to acquire a 60% interest in three offshore exploration blocks in Namibia’s Walvis Basin, marking its entry into the country as an operator.
The agreement, signed on 10 April 2026 with Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas, covers Petroleum Exploration Licences (PEL) 97, 99 and 100. Upon completion, bp will assume operatorship of the blocks, subject to regulatory approvals from the Namibian authorities and joint venture partners.
Under the deal, Eco will receive a once-off cash payment of N$44 million (US$2.7 million) on completion. BP will also carry Eco’s retained 25% interest through the current exploration phase, including covering associated costs for NAMCOR and local partners.
The total carried investment by BP could reach up to N$1.3 billion (US$63 million) if all options are exercised, with a cap of N$345 million (US$21 million) per licence.
Following completion, Eco will retain a 25% stake across the licences, while Namibia’s national oil company NAMCOR will hold 10% and local partners the remaining 5%.
“This successful farm-down of our Namibian Walvis Basin licences marks an important milestone for Eco Atlantic and Namibia. The transaction demonstrates our strategy of partnering with major operators to reduce risk while retaining exposure to significant upside,” said Eco Atlantic President and Chief Executive Officer, Gil Holzman.
Proceeds from the transaction will be used to support ongoing exploration and appraisal activities across Eco’s wider Atlantic Margin portfolio.
Planned work programmes include seismic data reprocessing on PEL 97 and a minimum 3,000 km² 3D seismic survey across PEL 99 and PEL 100, subject to approvals.
The agreement also provides for a potential drilling phase from 2028, with Eco retaining flexibility to either reduce its stake further in exchange for carried costs or fund its share of drilling.
BP Executive Vice President for Production and Operations, Gordon Birrell, said Namibia continues to attract growing industry interest due to its frontier basin potential.
“This agreement marks bp’s entry into the country as an operator, strengthens our exploration portfolio and provides long-term growth potential. We look forward to supporting Namibia in developing its resources,” he said.
The move builds on bp’s recent exploration activity in the region through Azule Energy, its 50:50 joint venture with Eni. Since the beginning of 2025, Azule Energy has announced four hydrocarbon discoveries, including the Volans-1X and Capricornus-1X finds in Namibia’s Orange Basin.
BP has reported two additional exploration discoveries so far in 2026, following 12 discoveries recorded in 2025, as it continues to expand its global upstream portfolio.
