Energy Information Administration
Angola is important to world energy markets
because it is a significant crude oil exporter. In the first
11 months of 1996, Angola supplied the United States with an average
of 345,000 barrels per day (b/d), or nearly 4 percent of U.S.
crude oil imports, thus making Angola the sixth largest source
of U.S. oil imports. Angolan oil production is set to rise from
its current 710,000 b/d to 800,000 b/d by 1998.
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GENERAL BACKGROUND
Following years of civil war, the Lusaka
Protocol, signed in November 1994, promised a lasting peace for
Angola. However, since then, there have been several failed attempts
to establish a coalition government between the current Angola
government and the National Union for the Total Independence of
Angola (UNITA). UNITA, led by Jonas Savimbi, is the main opposition
to the current government. In creating the new government, Savimbi
was offered one of the two vice presidential positions. The swearing
in of the new government, which was to have taken place on January
25, 1997, was postponed to February 12, 1997 when Savimbi and
other members of UNITA failed to show up. Savimbi has so far
refused the role of vice president in the new government, preferring
instead to be "chief counselor" to President Jose Eduardo
dos Santos. However, the current government is unwilling to create
such a position. United Nations Security Council Resolution 1087,
announced on December 11, 1996, called for the "establishment
of a Government of National Unity and Reconciliation (GURN) prior
to December 31, 1997." The resolution also called on the
parties to make rapid progress on taking "the political steps
towards national reconciliation, including the assumption by UNITA
deputies and officials of their posts ..." in the GURN.
Although the formation of the GURN has
been delayed, Angola is beginning to reestablish itself in the
international financial community. In October 1996, the International
Monetary Fund agreed to an Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility
with Angola which would allow the government to draw up to $75
million of an eventual $300 million to be spread over 3 years.
In addition, the World Bank has promised to provide $22 million
of humanitarian aid in 1997 and the European Union has granted
$17.4 million in humanitarian aid to help overcome the effects
of three decades of civil war. Besides the infusion of capital
from international financial institutions, private industry has
also shown new interest in Angola, primarily over new oil fields
located in the deep water sections offshore.
Most of Angola's oil reserves are located
in offshore Cabinda and the northern border area between Quinzau
and Soyo. Cabinda has been an area of conflict between the government
and the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC).
FLEC wants full independence from Angola. However, the conflict
has never spread to offshore Cabinda where the vast majority of
Angola's oil production is located. Recent discoveries offshore
have led to significantly increased interest in Angolan oil prospects.
The latest discoveries could increase Angolan oil production
to 800,000 barrels per day (b/d) in 1998, possibly as high as
1 million b/d by 2000, up sharply from the nearly 540,000 b/d
of oil production seen as recently as 1994.
Angola's crude oil is of generally high
quality. Cabinda crude (production of about 400,000 b/d) has
an API gravity of 32o and a sulfur content of 0.13
percent. Palanca crude (production of about 175,000 b/d) has
an API gravity of 38.6o and a sulfur content of 0.14
percent. Soyo crude (production of about 95,000 b/d) has an API
gravity of 39.5o and a sulfur content of 0.12 percent.
The quality of the crude oil makes it attractive for customers.
The United States is the primary recipient of Angola's crude
oil, importing an average of 345,000 b/d in the first 11 months
of 1996, representing about half of all Angolan crude oil exports.
This made Angola the sixth largest source of oil imports into
the United States, behind Venezuela, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Mexico,
and Nigeria.
The leading international oil companies
in Angola are Chevron, producing approximately 400,000 b/d and
Elf, which is producing about 180,000 b/d. Chevron (39.2%), along
with Angola's state-owned oil company Sociedade Nacional de Combustievis
de Angola's (SONANGOL) (41%), are the chief operators in Cabinda.
Elf is the chief operator in Block 3 while Texaco is the chief
operator in Block 2.
In December 1996, Norway's Saga Petroleum
ASA presented an application to Angola for an operator license
on the deep water Block 1, located off the coast of Angola. Currently,
Shell is the primary company drilling in Block 1. Saga hopes
its experience in the North Sea will prove promising in the deep
water offshore acreage of Angola.
Also in December 1996, the French company
Total announced that its first drilling efforts in Angola (Block
2) have shown promising results. The Espadarte North-1 well flowed
at 9,150 b/d while the Congro South-1 well flowed at 2,350 b/d
and the Veleiro-1 well produced at 6,400 b/d.
Ranger Oil, the leading operator in
Block 4 has had somewhat different results of late. Recent tests
have shown that the recoverable reserves in the field are 6-10
million barrels, down from the previous estimate of 10-15 million
barrels. This has led the company to reevaluate whether the field
is economically worth developing.
Onshore, Petrofina is the leading operator,
with interest in the Kwanza Valley and around the northern city
of Soyo. However, as much as 85% of the reserves in Kwanza Valley
have already been extracted and Soyo was the only oil producing
area that was affected by the civil war. Production at Soyo,
which was once as much as 30,000 b/d fell to only 5,000 b/d in
recent years. However, with the recent peace, Petrofina is currently
making repairs in hopes of once again achieving pre-war production
rates.
Refining
Angola's demand for refined products
is expected to grow as the economy gradually rebuilds following
the end of the civil war. Angola has a 32,100 b/d refinery in Luanda and a 10,000 b/d topping unit in Cabinda. Capacity utilization at the Luanda refinery is low,
and Angolan officials have expressed their desire to upgrade and
de-bottleneck the plant. Although plans were announced in 1992
to build a new and larger refinery in the south of the country,
nothing has happened due to the inability to raise the approximately
$2 billion needed to finance the project.
COUNTRY OVERVIEW
President:
Jose Eduardo dos Santos
Prime Minister:
Fernando Franca van Dunem
Independence:
November 11, 1975 (from Portugal)
Population (1996E):
10.3 million
Location/Size:
Southern Africa/481,354 square miles, slightly less than twice
the size of Texas
Major Cities:
Luanda (capital), Huambo, Lobito, Benguela, Lubango, Malanje,
Soyo
Languages: Portuguese
(official), various Bantu dialects
Ethnic Groups (1995E):
Ovimbundu (37%), Kimbundu (25%), Bakongo (13%), Mestico (2%),
European (1%), other (22%)
Religions (1995E):
Indigenous beliefs (47%), Roman Catholic (38%), Protestant (15%)
Defense Branches:
Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, National Police Force
ECONOMIC OVERVIEW
Currency: Readjusted
Kwanza (KZR)
Official Exchange Rate (7/96):
US$1 = 196,000 kwanza
Gross Domestic Product (GDP-purchasing
power equivalent) (1995):
$6.4 billion
Real GDP Growth Rate (1995):
5.0%
Inflation Rate (consumer prices)(1995):
300% per month
Current Account Balance (1995):
-$420 million
Major Trading Partners:
United States, France, Portugal, Brazil, Spain, Germany, the
Netherlands
Merchandise Exports (1995):
$3.9 billion
Merchandise Imports (1995):
$1.7 billion
Major Export Products:
Petroleum and related products, diamonds, coffee, fish, timber,
cotton
Major Import Products:
Machinery and electrical equipment, food, vehicles and spare
parts, textiles, clothing, medicines, military equipment
Oil Export Revenues (1994):
$2.9 billion
Oil Export Revenues/Total Export
Revenues (1994): 96%
Total External Debt (1995):
$11.9 billion
ENERGY OVERVIEW
Minister of Petroleum:
Albina Faria de Assis Africano
Proven Oil Reserves (1/1/97):
5.4 billion barrels
Crude Oil Production (1996E):
710,000 barrels per day (b/d)
Oil Production Capacity (1996E):
715,000 b/d
Oil Consumption (1996E):
26,000 b/d
Major Crude Oil Customers (1996E):
United States (50%), Europe, South Korea, China, Taiwan, the
Philippines
Crude Oil Refining Capacity (1/1/97): 42,100 b/d
Net Oil Exports (1996E):
685,000 b/d
Oil Exports to the United States
(1996E): 345,000 b/d
Natural Gas Reserves (1/1/97):
1.7 trillion cubic feet (Tcf)
Natural Gas Production (1996E):
20 Billion cubic feet (Bcf)
Natural Gas Consumption (1996E):
20 Bcf
Electric Generation Capacity (1996E):
620 megawatts
Electricity Production (1996E):
1.9 billion kilowatthours
ENVIRONMENT OVERVIEW
Total Energy Consumption (1995):
0.09 quadrillion Btu
Energy Consumption per Dollar of
GDP (1995): 14.3 thousand
Btu
Energy Consumption per Capita (1995):
8.9 million Btu (vs. 331.8 million Btu in U.S.)
Energy-related Carbon Emissions (1995):
1.42 million metric tons (0.02% of world carbon emissions)
Carbon Emissions per Thousand Dollars
of GDP (1995): 0.22 metric
tons
Carbon Emissions per Capita (1995):
0.14 metric tons (vs. 5.42 metric tons in U.S.)
Major Environmental Issues:
Deforestation, unsafe drinking water, land degradation
OIL AND GAS INDUSTRIES
Organization:
State-owned Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola (SONANGOL)
oversees offshore and onshore oil operations in Angola. Cabinda
Gulf Oil Company (CABGOC) comprises Chevron (39.2%), SONANGOL
(41%), Elf (10%), and Agip (9.8%).
Major Foreign Oil Company Involvement:
Agip, Amoco, Anglo-Suisse, British Gas, British Petroleum, Chevron,
Daewoo, Elf Aquitane, Energy Africa, Exxon, Mobil, Norsk Hydro,
Occidental, Pedco, Petrobras, Petrofina, Petrogal, Ranger, Shell,
Statoil, Texaco, Total
Major Oil Fields (production - b/d)(1995):
Cabinda:
400,000 b/d,
Block 3:
175,000 b/d,
Block 2:
70,000 b/d
Major Refineries (capacity-b/d)(1/97):
Luanda (32,100), Cabinda (topping unit) (10,000)
Major Oil Terminals:
Malongo (Cabinda), Quinfuquena, Palanca, Luanda
The following links are provided solely as a service to our customers,
and therefore should not be construed as advocating or reflecting
any position of the Energy Information Administration (EIA) or the United States Government.
In addition, EIA does not guarantee the content or accuracy of any
information presented in linked sites.
The Angola Home Page (sponsored by the U.S./Angola Chamber of Commerce)
OIL
Links to other sites:
Latest EIA Detailed Annual Data (1994)
1997 CIA World Factbook - Angola
U.S. International Trade Administration, Energy
Division
Mbendi Information Service for additional information on Angola's oil industry
Angola Peace Monitor (published by Action for Southern Africa)
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File last modified: February 14, 1997
Contact:
Douglas MacIntyre
dmacinty@eia.doe.gov
Phone: (202)586-1831
Fax: (202)586-9753
URL: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/angola.htm