On Friday, Uganda and an Australian subsidiary of DGR Global signed a production-sharing agreement for oil exploration in the country’s western area.
DGR Energy Turaco Uganda Limited intends to explore the Turaco block in the Albertine Rift Valley, which straddles Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The block is 637 square kilometers (246 square miles).
Turaco was one of five blocks available for bidding in Uganda’s second licensing cycle, which started in 2019.
Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa said in Kampala that “this license marks a significant milestone for the competitive second licensing round.”
She went on to say that the round’s implementation had been delayed by the COVID-19 outbreak because travel restrictions had hampered the bidding and negotiation procedures.
As part of the arrangement, DGR Energy will get four years of exploration time. The reserves are believed to be 6.5 billion barrels, with commercial hydrocarbon resources discovered in Uganda in 2006.
The Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), and TotalEnergies of France jointly own all active development fields.
The commencement of mass production is expected in 2025. DGR Global’s subsidiary Armour Energy Uganda Ltd received a two-year extension on its exploration license for the Kanywataba area on Friday. It started looking at the area in 2017.
