Shell has awarded a $16 million drilling contract to Northern Ocean Limited (NOL) to explore Namibia’s offshore Petroleum Exploration Licence 39 (PEL 39), marking its first major undertaking in the country since a setback earlier in the year.
Local sources confirmed that the exploration campaign will be executed using the Deepsea Mira semi-submersible rig and is scheduled to begin operations in April 2026. Both companies have also confirmed the campaign, which is expected to take about 45 days to complete.
According to the terms of the agreement, one firm well will be drilled with an option for a second, potentially lifting NOL’s total contracted backlog to $387 million.
“Drilling is set to commence in April 2026, marking an important milestone in our commitment to responsibly explore Namibia’s offshore potential and support the country’s energy ambitions,” Shell Namibia Country Chair Eduardo Tamayo is reported to have said on his LinkedIn page.
“We are excited to support their continued exploration efforts with safe, efficient operations,” said Northern Ocean.
The Odfjell Drilling-managed Deepsea Mira rig has been deployed by multiple players in Namibia’s offshore waters, including BP, BW Energy, and Rhino Resources.
It helped BW Energy confirm the presence of hydrocarbons in the Kudu block in November following the drilling of the Kharas-1 appraisal well.
British energy giant BP also confirmed a significant gas condensate discovery at the Volans-1X exploration well under Petroleum Exploration Licence 85 (PEL 85) using the rig in October.
Shell’s operational footprint in Namibia
Shell’s exploration journey has helped transform Namibia’s offshore profile over the past decade.
The company operates the PEL 39 alongside partners like QatarEnergy and NAMCOR and has been seeking commercial prospects and expanding opportunities in Namibia.
It first entered Namibian waters in 2014, but it was not until late 2021 that momentum shifted dramatically with the Graff discovery. Other finds like La Rona and the larger Jonker followed soon after.
These finds, alongside discoveries by TotalEnergies and Galp, turned the Orange Basin into one of the world’s hottest exploration hotspots.
But Shell encountered a major setback in Namibia in January this year, when it announced a $400 million write-down at PEL 39, citing non-commerciality and the high cost of drilling.
This tempered initial enthusiasm, raising questions about whether Namibia’s offshore reserves could be developed profitably.
Shell’s cross‑border strategy: stakes in both sides of the Orange Basin
Shell now holds oil assets on both sides of the Orange Basin — in Namibia and in South Africa — making it one of the most strategically positioned majors in this frontier exploration zone.
Despite a multi-million dollar impairment in Namibia, Shell has reaffirmed its commitment to the Orange Basin, which has proven to be a working hydrocarbon system.
It has maintained confidence in the basin’s long-term prospectivity, arguing that additional drilling and appraisal work would be needed to understand the reservoirs fully.
The new Deepsea Mira campaign underscores that stance and signals that Shell still sees significant upside in PEL 39.
Tamayo encouraged local businesses to liaise with NOL regarding subcontracting linked to the rig’s operations.
The deployment of the Deepsea Mira will allow Shell to continue derisking its acreage, refine geological models, and advance development scenarios.
The renewed programme signals strong confidence from one of the world’s most influential energy companies at a time when the country is gearing up for expanded local content frameworks.
Namibia, one of Africa’s most promising frontiers, is still witnessing early infrastructure planning and possible pre-FID workstreams.
While Shell plans another drilling project in April 2026, TotalEnergies looks forward to taking an FID for its giant Venus find in late 2026.
However, the announcement of this drilling project is coming just days after Shell farmed into South Africa’s portion of the Orange Basin with a 60% stake in Block 2C.
The transaction involves state-owned PetroSA and follows recent reports of the suspension of Shell’s exploration activities in the country.
Shell will fund the development of the acreage, with some documents seen revealing plans to drill up to three initial exploration wells in the near future.
