Total expands offshore acreage in Mauritania with two new blocks

Total and Mauritania’s Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines have signed an agreement awarding Total two new deepwater exploration and production contracts for Blocks C15 and C31.

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Total said on Wednesday that the two blocks covered an area of 14,175 square kilometers.

According to the terms of the contracts, Total will be the operator of these two blocks with a 90 percent interest alongside the Société Mauritanienne des Hydrocarbures et de Patrimoine Minier (SMHPM) holding the remaining 10 percent.

The new blocks add to the participation interest and operatorship in Blocks C7, C9, and C18. The company holds a 90 percent interest in C7 and C9 as well as a 45 percent participating interest C18.

Arnaud Breuillac, president of exploration and production at Total, said: “This agreement contributes to the implementation of Total’s strategy that aims to explore basins in proven yet underexplored petroleum systems.

“The addition of these new blocks to our existing positions demonstrates our commitment to the development of the Mauritanian oil sector and will enhance Total’s presence in West Africa, one of the Group’s core exploration areas.”

Acreage in Mauritania, Senegal, Ivory Coast, and Nigeria comprises half of Total’s acreage in Africa with the Mauritanian basin, according to Total, one of the most promising. Total added that it would drill a well on Block C9 in 2019.