The first oil drilling in São Tomé and Príncipe will take place in March 2022, in block 6 of the exclusive economic zone explored by the consortium formed by the Anglo-Dutch Shell and Portuguese Galp oil companies, according to an official source cited by the Lusa news agency.

According to the director of the National Petroleum Agency of São Tomé and Príncipe, Olegário Tiny, the operation will last between 60 and 90 days. "There has been an in-depth environmental impact study to safeguard against all the environmental risks that may arise," he assured. ANP-STP and the representatives of Shell and Galp started last week a round of presentations to the holders of the sovereignty bodies and that will be extended to the local, regional powers and civil society, in order to share information about this project awaited "with expectation" by the São Tomense people for more than 20 years.

From a financial point of view, says the National Petroleum Director, the start of drilling has "no immediate direct impact" on the country's economy, but, "from the point of view of geological knowledge of the area, this first hole may be of great importance.

"Once the drilling is done and the elements that come out of all this work are collected, after 30 days (?) we will have a better geological knowledge of the subsoil of Sao Tome and Principe, of our waters, but also at the regional level, the responsible added.

The consortium in block 6 is made up of Galp, which is the operator, and Shell, both with 45%

of participative interest, and by the San Tomean State, represented by the ANP, with 10%.

Located about 100 kilometers off the coast, Block 6 occupies an area of 5,024 square kilometers in São Tomé territorial waters at a depth of about 2,500 meters, an area five times the size of the islands of São Tomé and Príncipe.

"The nature of these types of projects, historically tells us that only one in ten projects is economically viable. So that means that a well may not prove the potential of the block itself or even of the country," stressed Vanessa Gasparinho, Galp and Shell's representative in São Tomé and Príncipe.

The Galp and Shell consortium refers in a statement that "for the execution of the drilling was hired a vessel capable of operating in ultra-deep waters safely, with a high technical capacity and state-of-the-art technology.

On December 3, during the balance of the three years of governance, the Prime Minister, Jorge Bom Jesus said he hoped that "it will be a successful borehole," mentioning that it will be a reason for hope for the country, which needs "additional financing" for its economy.

Source Lusa