Oil find in Oyo could quadruple Congo Republic's output

Two oil companies have discovered the first oil deposit in the northern part of the Republic of Congo.

The discovery was announced over the weekend in the town of Oyo. According to experts, the features of this first onshore oil field promises a possibility to quadruple the country’s production.

The Delta de la Cuvette deposit, covers an area of 9,392 square metres, has four wells, the first of which has been drilled since March, according to the African Society for Petroleum Research and Distribution (SARPD-oil) and the PEPA company which are in charge of the operation.

Mohamed Rahmani, the marketing director of SARPD-oil is quoted to have said: “Four wells have been identified. Together they make for 359 million barrels of oil. That gives us about 983,000 barrels per day [versus 350,000 currently].

Both firms are owned by Congolese businessman, Claude Wilfrid Etoka, a close business associate to the Congolese government.

Exploration studies indicate that the deposit could produce over one billion cubic metres of hydrocarbons, including 359 million barrels of oil, being 983,000 barrels per day.