Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons hosted a public webinar on April 27, 2020 and discussed the current state of the global and domestic oil industry under the theme, “The State of Oil Markets and Global Rebound.”
Watch the webinar recap video led by H.E. Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima in the video below:
For an in-depth overview of the Equatorial Guinea Webinar, watch Part 1-4 in the videos below:
Part 1: Following the global outbreak of COVID-19 and its effect on the global oil market, the African Energy Chamber, in partnership with Africa Oil & Power organized a webinar on the 27 April 2020, where Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons, H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, spoke about the state of oil markets and global rebound. The webinar was moderated by Caty Hirst, Director of Programming at Africa Oil & Power and Concepcion Esuba, Founder of Evicon.
Part 2: H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima discussed new opportunities and survival plans during COVID-19. The Minister advised that each country assesses and monitors the pandemic in order to make decisions on the length of their lockdown periods. He also added that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members and non-OPEC members need to work together.
Part 3: The importance of downstream diversification for the African continent was highlighted by H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima. The Minister stated that Equatorial Guinea and other oil producing countries have the opportunity to take charge of their oil industries, just like Malaysia and Indonesia, adding that Africa needs more refineries to be able to supply the African market as the downstream sector creates jobs and continues to grow.
Part 4: H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima discussed how 2020 and 2021 will be years of research and development for Equatorial Guinea. He pointed out that the ministry expects to have additional gas for liquefication and will give an update on oil and gas projects in the last quarter of 2020. To prepare for the rebound, the ministry will pass new legislation for its oil and gas sector to ensure diversification. Furthermore, the Year of Investment campaign is still very important for Equatorial Guinea as it is aimed at attracting more investors into the oil and gas sector.
