Located in Lobito Bay approximately 500 km south of Luanda, Sonamet provides state-of-the-art fabrication and EPC services to leading international oil companies in Angola. The company is ready to actively participate in the transfer of technology, best practices and technical training to Namibia’s oil and gas sector, following its string of offshore discoveries. Energy Capital & Power spoke with Sonamet General Manager Domingos Augusto about the company’s upcoming projects and expansion strategy.
To what extent is Sonamet interested in contributing to Namibia’s emerging oil and gas sector?
Regional expansion has been our target for a while. There are plenty of areas in Namibia to which we could contribute, starting with our training facility. We could provide professional training and certification for new welders, pipefitters and other technical skill sets. In addition, with close proximity between the two countries and our 25 years of experience in the industry, we can become a key partner in the development of oil and gas structures for Namibia.
What are Sonamet’s key projects for 2024?
In 2024, there will be intense activity with the CLOV Phase 3 development and several Azule Energy Agogo Packages, such as floating production storage and offloading (FPSO), subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines (SURF) and subsea production systems (SPS). We also remain active on the dismantling services, having dismantled more than six buoys to date.
How can Angolan companies stand to benefit from Namibia’s recent hydrocarbon discoveries?
The more experienced nations in the southern region, namely Angola, can share know-how, experience and capabilities. Angola can benefit from providing a variety of services, thus creating a wider network of services in the region, which could result in improving existing infrastructures and developing new ones between the two countries. Domains such as education and health can also be positively impacted by the industry. Angola could benefit from areas of expertise of services outside of oil and gas.
How does Sonamet see its operations in Namibia evolving in the next 3-5 years?
Despite the early stage of its oil and gas industry, Namibia has very good infrastructures throughout the country, as well as a favorable business environment, which certainly helps with oil and gas development. We aim to remain a leading player in our segment of the oil and gas industry, expanding outside of Angola and focusing on not only construction, but also engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) projects. However, this depends on our neighboring countries. We are ready to collaborate. But we need good neighbors to allow us to contribute.
Energy Capital & Power is a strategic partner of the Namibia International Energy Conference (NIEC) – taking place in Windhoek on April 23-25, 2024. The 6th annual conference unites industry leaders, business executives and policymakers to engage in dialogue, exchange ideas, create new partnerships and identify strategies to foster a prosperous energy industry in Namibia and beyond. For more information, please visit https://www.nieconference.com/
