Paulino Jerónimo, President of Angola’s National Oil, Gas & Biofuels Agency (ANPG), will share insights into the country’s upcoming investment opportunities at the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) conference – taking place September 3-4 in Luanda. As the country’s upstream regulator, the ANPG has been making considerable strides towards opening-up the market to foreign investment, with recent reforms and block opportunities set to drive the next wave of oil and gas production in Angola. Jerónimo’s insights at the event will not only provide a comprehensive overview of Angola’s block opportunities, but support new investments across the upstream sector.

Angola is experiencing a surge in upstream oil and gas investments, with $60 billion planned across the market for the next five years. These investments have been made possible with the country’s ambitious licensing strategy, as well as ongoing regulatory reforms and flexible investment structures spearheaded by the ANPG. As the country prepares to launch its next licensing round and promotes acreage on offer through direct negotiation, Angola is affirming its position as a prime investment destination for oil and gas companies.

As sub-Saharan Africa’s second largest oil producer, Angola implemented an aggressive strategy in 2019, whereby the country seeks to award 50 concessions by 2025. To date, more than 30 new concessions have been awarded over four licensing rounds. The country is expected to launch its next licensing round in 2025, offering ten blocks for exploration in the offshore Kwanza and Benguela basins. This next round follows a successful tender launched in 2023 and concluded in 2024, whereby nine companies qualified as operators and five qualified as non-operators. Since this round, the ANPG has received proposals from three international companies for nine blocks in the onshore Kwanza basin. Proposals were submitted for blocks that were not awarded during the 2023 tender.

In addition to licensing rounds, Angola offers flexible investment structures that continue to entice new players to the market. In recent years, Angola launched a permanent offer scheme, enabling companies to invest outside of the confines of traditional licensing rounds. Currently, 11 blocks are available on permanent offer. In 2024, the country went a step further, introducing five marginal fields for development. Situated in producing blocks with proven systems, these marginal fields are well-suited for smaller players seeking near-term production.

Meanwhile, Angola is also expanding and modernizing its library of seismic data under efforts to support future exploration campaigns. Currently, the country’s basins are support by a wealth of 2D and 3D seismic data, with recent acquisition campaigns aimed at improving the understanding of on- and offshore acreage. The ANPG has been spearheading efforts to reprocess existing seismic data, seeking to improve geological updates. In early 2025, energy data and analysis company TGS completed the reprocessing of the Block 16 GeoStreamer MC3D seismic dataset in the Lower Congo basin. This follows an announcement made by TGS at AOG 2024, with the company set to reprocess its onshore Kwanza basin dataset. These efforts provide detailed insights into the subsurface, thereby mitigating investment risks and improving decision-making.

At AOG 2025, Jerónimo is expected to outline Angola’s strategy to increase production through new exploration campaigns. By exploring the country’s opportunities – from offshore blocks to onshore drilling to partnerships and seismic acquisitions – Jerónimo will offer operators the insights they need to invest in Angola.