Milan - Italy’s biggest oil and gas group Eni has made a new
giant natural gas discovery offshore Mozambique which will boost the potential
of the Mamba complex to at least 1 133 billion cubic metres (bcm) or 40 trillion
cubic feet (tcf) of gas.
After a first discovery last year, the Mamba fields in
Mozambique have become Eni’s most valuable single project, confirming
expectations that East Africa is set to emerge as a major gas exporter with
recent finds.
The new well, drilled in the eastern part of Area 4 at the
Mamba North East 1 exploration prospect, will increase the resource base of Area 4 by at least 283 bcm or 10 tcf, Eni said in a statement on Monday.
Eni shares extended gains on the news to touch €18.12 and
traded at €18.03 at 09:10 GMT, up 1.41% on the day.
Eni said it plans to drill at least another four wells in
nearby structures in 2012 to fully estimate the upside potential of the Mamba
complex.