H.E. Vincent de Paul Massassa, Minister of Oil, Gas and Mines of Gabon, has expressed his desire to see Japanese operators participate in the country’s ongoing bidding round for offshore and onshore petroleum blocks.
During a meeting in Libreville with the Japanese Agency for International Cooperation’s country representative, Yonezaki Eiro, H.E. Minister Massassa highlighted existing cooperation between Japan and Gabon, as well as the rising necessity for foreign investment in the local oil and gas sector.
Eiro confirmed that Gabon and Japan have “very good relations,” as Japan currently purchases Gabonese oil, and the two countries strongly cooperate in other, non-oil sectors as well. In addition to refined and crude oil, Japan imports manganese and wood from Gabon, while Gabon mainly imports cars and industrial equipment.
In November 2018, the Gabonese state launched a bidding round for 35 maritime oil blocks, of which 23 are deep offshore and 12 are conventional offshore. 24 companies have already expressed their interest, including 18 for blocks in shallow offshore and six in deep and ultra-deep offshore.
