While most of the focus is on the offshore of Africa, and in more recent years the deepwater, the landlocked countries of the vast continent are often ignored. However, the E&P potential of several of these countries remains high, despite the challenges posed by their landlocked status in terms of production and export of hydrocarbons.
Overview of Landlocked African Nations
There are 16 landlocked countries in Africa:
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Ethiopia
- Eswatini (former Swaziland)
- Lesotho
- Malawi
- Mali
- Niger
- Rwanda
- South Sudan
- Uganda
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Most of these countries have a history of oil and gas exploration, including Coal Bed Methane (CBM), and three are significant oil producers.
Map of Landlocked Countries in Africa
Key Oil Producers
South Sudan
South Sudan is the biggest landlocked producer in Africa with an estimated production of 160,000 BOPD.
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Chad
Chad, the largest landlocked country in Africa, produces an estimated 65,000 BOPD, with most exported through Cameroon to the coast.
Niger
Niger is producing around 10,000 BOPD with significant undeveloped discovered resources.
Here's a summary of current oil production in key landlocked African countries:
| Country | Estimated Production (BOPD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| South Sudan | 160,000 | Largest landlocked producer in Africa |
| Chad | 65,000 | Exports through Cameroon |
| Niger | 10,000 | Significant undeveloped resources |
Emerging Producers and Exploration Activities
Infrastructure to Support New Discovered Oil and Gas Resources in Sub-Saharan Africa
Uganda
Uganda boasts significant oil reserves but is yet to join the list of producers. The country’s first oil discovery was made in 2006 in Lake Albert, but start-up of production has faced an unprecedented series of much publicised delays. However, oil production from the Tilenga project operated by TotalEnergies and the Kingfisher project operated by CNOOC is optimistically expected to start in 2025 and reach a combined 230,000 BOPD according to reports. One of the challenges of the project has been how to build the 1,500 km electrically heated pipeline needed to export the crude via Tanzania.
Lake Albert in Uganda, where significant oil discoveries have been made.
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Ethiopia
Ethiopia has a series of gas discoveries in the Ogaden Basin at Calub, Hilala and El-Kuran. China’s Poly-GCL is the operator of the multi-TCF Calub and Hilala fields and has been working on plans for an ambitious pipeline taking the gas across Ethiopia to Djibouti.
Zimbabwe
There is much anticipation in Zimbabwe with Invictus Energy planning to spud the Mukuyu-1 wildcat in the Cabora Bassa Basin in the third quarter of 2022. It is touted as the largest known undrilled prospect onshore Africa with an independently estimated 20 Tcf and 845 million barrels according to Invictus.
Botswana
More recently, Canadian company Reconnaissance Energy Africa (or Recon Africa) announced that it has been granted a petroleum licence in northwestern Botswana contiguous with its Namibia licences.
Other Countries
Meanwhile, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Eswatini (former Swaziland), Lesotho, Mali, Malawi and Rwanda have all seen varying levels of interest from the upstream industry. Some of it is stop-start as the smaller companies seek farm-in partners and funding to carry out exploration work.
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