Namibia’s oil boom has this week moved closer to home for AIM-quoted explorer Tower Resources PLC (AIM:TRP), as US major Chevron agreed a deal to take control of an offshore block in the Walvis basin.
Attentions have mainly been on the Orange basin recently as a series of large-scale, ‘world class’ discoveries have spurred an influx of industry interest in an oil play that straddles both Namibian and South African waters.
Tower was an earlier entrant to Namibia and as an early mover secured prime acreage in the Walvis basin, another area located further north up the country’s coast that’s deemed by geologists to also have ‘high impact’ exploration potential.
As interest in the Namibian oil frontier grows, evidently majors like Chevron are now taking the untapped potential of Walvis seriously.
Tower is pleased to see Chevron invest in the Walvis Basin. As an established player in the region, #TRP has anticipated that more companies would turn their attention to the Walvis, and we continue to believe that there is potential similar to that of the Orange Basin.
— Tower Resources (@TowerResources) May 1, 2024
Having taken 80% of the PEL licence block, Chevron is now planning to drill an exploration well in the fourth quarter of this year.
The well will likely see plenty of interest and attention, not least in the offices of Tower Resources.
Success in Chevron’s Walvis project will further boost the appeal of Tower’s acreage which spans some 23 square kilometres and is believed to have ‘billion barrel oil potential’.
Tower, meanwhile, is advancing its exploration project with desktop work, in preparation for future drill plans of its own.
Back in October, Tower shared with investors a detailed review of the Walvis basin modelling work completed on PEL 96 last year, including an updated analysis of oil seeps.
Through the analysis the company begun the process to identify and evaluate potential structures and stratigraphic traps along oil migration paths.
Analysis continues through the first half of 2024.
Tower recently shared with investors its most recent technical presentation.
As the Namibian frontier continues to gain momentum it appears the market may be coming to Tower, and the company’s early bet on the Walvis could be set to pay off.
Investors will no doubt be keeping a close watch on this London small-cap in the coming weeks and months.