GHANA’S NEXT OIL BET: SHELL AND CHEVRON TARGET SOUTH DEEPWATER TANO
Ghana is making another major push to revive its upstream petroleum sector, and this time, two global energy giants are at the centre of the story. Source: Aldrenor The Government of Ghana, GNPC, GNPC Explorco, Shell Overseas Holdings Limited and Chevron Sub-Saharan Africa Ventures Limited have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the South Deepwater Tano (SDWT) Block offshore Ghana. The agreement provides a framework for the parties to negotiate exploration and production rights for the block. Importantly, the MoU is non-binding and does not yet constitute a final petroleum agreement. Why South Deepwater Tano matters Located offshore Ghana, the SDWT block covers approximately 3,482 square kilometres and lies in deep-to-ultra-deep waters. The block is believed to hold more than 3 billion barrels of hydrocarbon potential. However, this figure represents estimated potential—not proven commercially recoverable reserves. There is also an existing discovery to appraise. Previous o...