AUSTRALIAN Stock Exchange-listed Invictus Energy has announced a major gas discovery in Mukuyu in northern Zimbabwe, which it says represents one of the most significant developments in the southern African country’s oil and gas sector.
Minister of Mines and Mining Development Soda Zhemu hailed the discovery for its potential to positively impact the economy and diversify Zimbabwe’s energy mix.
The Zimbabwean government and Invictus emphasised that the discovery has yet to be confirmed through ongoing tests and exploration. Four hydrocarbon samples were recovered from the Mukuyu-2 well, confirming earlier discoveries at the Mukuyu-1 well seven kilometres away.
The latest discovery “provides confirmation of the large potential of the Mukuyu field which has a structural closure of over 200km²,” Invictus managing director Scott Macmillan said in a statement. More drilling is required to prove the extent of the discovery further.
Invictus is opening one of the last untested large frontier rift basins in onshore Africa — the Cabora Bassa Basin — in northern Zimbabwe through a high-impact exploration programme. Given its deep inland location in Zimbabwe, the gas may supply mining customers in Zambia and perhaps Tanzania via piped and small-scale liquefied natural gas (SSLNG).
Another obvious market is for domestic customers and electricity generation. Exxon, formerly Mobil Oil Corp, abandoned exploration in Zimbabwe in the 1990s after concluding that any discoveries were more likely to hold gas than oil.
Invictus used this data and vastly increased its exploration licence area Paul Eardley-Taylor, gas subsector lead for Standard Bank, says the Invictus discovery in Zimbabwe is encouraging, but needs further development.
“It’s early days yet. Invictus will need to undertake more exploration and appraisal wells and flow tests. I suspect by the end of 2024 we will have a better feel for the size and quality of the discovery. “What is positive for Zimbabwe and the region is that the global coal-to-gas switch is gaining momentum as a way to reduce carbon emissions and meet the energy needs of customers.” — Moneyweb
