Equatorial Guinea has officially relaunched its open-door licensing process for 2025, paving the way for a major licensing round at the end of 2025 or early 2026.
The country announced this launch via a press release retrieved by Energy in Africa on Monday.
With 24 available exploration blocks and two blocks for appraisal and development, this move marks a strategic shift toward prioritizing licensing and exploration, with a strong focus on regulatory competitiveness, tax incentives, and data transparency.
At CERAWeek in Houston last week, Antonio Oburu Ondo, Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, presented the nation’s all-encompassing exploration strategy, which aims to increase hydrocarbon production, attract investment, address diminishing output, and improve competitiveness.
Among the fiscal reforms are the reductions of the corporate tax from 35% to 25%, the dividend tax from 25% to 10%, and the withholding tax for residents from 6.25% to 3% (or from 15% to 10% for non-residents).
The country’s open-door policy enables international oil and gas companies to apply for licenses through a streamlined process involving direct negotiation with the state.
However, seven additional production-sharing contracts were swiftly awarded, signaling the effectiveness of the government’s aggressive promotion strategy.
Africa Oil Corp. secured blocks EG-31 and EG-18, Chevron acquired EG-11 and EG-06, Panoro Energy obtained EG-23 and EG-01, while Antler Global claimed EG-08.
The next licensing round will be underpinned by a new competitive tax law, a strengthened hydrocarbons law, and the launch of a multi-client 3D seismic acquisition initiative – all aimed at boosting investor confidence and accelerating exploration.
Oburu announced that a new multi-client 3D seismic acquisition and the reprocessing of legacy data will launch by year-end during AEW 2025.
This initiative aims to provide investors with high-quality geological insights, supporting a stronger focus on drilling.
All the country’s operators have either carried out in-field or exploration drilling campaigns in 2024 or plan to do so between 2025 and 2027.
Equatorial Guinea’s gas mega hub initiative
Equatorial Guinea’s Gas Mega Hub initiative remains a key pillar of its energy strategy, with ongoing collaborations with Cameroon on the Yoyo-Yolanda fields and Nigeria on the Gulf of Guinea Pipeline Project to monetize and process gas at the onshore Punta Europa facilities.
The country is advancing several multi-phase initiatives to reinforce its position as a regional gas powerhouse. These include the Alen Gas Monetization Project (580 BCF), the Alba Tail Gas Monetization Project (825 BCF), and the Aseng Gas Monetization Project (~1 TCF).
At the same time, the government is making progress on climate initiatives.
It aims to reposition Equatorial Guinea as a leader in gas and transitional energy while developing carbon credit ventures through international collaborations.
