Chevron Namibia Exploration II Limited, a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation, has acquired an 80% stake and operatorship in Petroleum Exploration License 82 (PEL 82) offshore Namibia from Custos Energy.
The deal leaves Custos Energy and the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR) each retaining a 10% stake.
PEL 82 covers blocks 2112B and 2212A in the Walvis Basin, offshore Namibia—one of the most promising regions for oil exploration.
“Custos Energy (Pty) Ltd. is pleased to announce the completion of the previously announced farm-in by Chevron Namibia Exploration II Limited, a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation (Chevron), into Petroleum Exploration License 82 (PEL 82),” Custos Chairman & Chief Executive Officer Knowledge Katti said.
Katti noted that PEL 82 governs blocks 2112B and 2212A, located in the Walvis Basin, offshore Namibia.
“PEL 82 is one of the Walvis Basin’s most attractive opportunities. Approximately 70% of the total block area is covered by extensive existing seismic data—over 3,500 km of 2D and 9,500 km² of 3D data. Previous drilling activity on PEL 82 included the Murombe-1 and Wingat-1 wells,” he said.
The CEO highlighted that the acquisition of an interest in PEL 82 adds to Chevron’s existing offshore exploration portfolio in Namibia, where it currently operates Petroleum Exploration License 90 (PEL 90) in the Orange Basin.
“Together with its joint venture partners Trago Energy (Pty) Ltd., a subsidiary of Custos, and NAMCOR, Chevron completed its first deepwater offshore well in PEL 90 in January. The drilling program provided valuable information on key aspects of the basin, though the well did not yield the desired commercial outcome,” he added.
Katti said the PEL 82 interest acquisition aligns with Chevron’s exploration strategy of expanding its acreage in prospective and promising geological plays globally.
“Completion of Chevron’s entry into PEL 82 is another indicator of the quality and opportunity associated with our offshore portfolio. We are thrilled to expand our partnership with Chevron, positioning us to unveil together another emerging basin in Namibia,” he said.
This comes after Chevron announced last month that it did not find commercial hydrocarbon reserves in an exploration well in Namibia’s Orange Basin.
The U.S. oil producer said the well provided valuable information about the basin, and the company anticipated further exploration efforts in Namibia.
