24 October 2012
South Africa’s PetroSA has signed a cooperation pact with the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Cohydro Sarl that will see the two state oil companies jointly pursuing oil and gas opportunities in the DRC.
A committee consisting of members from PetroSA and Cohydro Sarl has been established to facilitate the implementation of the agreement.
The agreement was signed in Pretoria on Tuesday during a meeting of the South Africa-DRC bi-national commission, with presidents Jacob Zuma and Joseph Kabila in attendance.
“This important agreement will establish a strategic cooperation in the activities of pre-exploration, exploration, development and production of hydrocarbons [oil and gas] for the benefit of the two countries,” a joint statement issued by the commission read.
The agreement represented a significant milestone, said PetroSA Group chief executive officer Nosizwe Nokwe-Macamo.
“PetroSA faces an exciting future. We are pursuing several growth initiatives. At the core of this is the establishment of strategic partnerships with several [state companies] located on the continent and internationally,” Nokwe-Macamo said in a statement.
“PetroSA is poised to grow into a leading integrated African energy company. This requires the nurturing of strategic partnerships that can assist PetroSA to achieve its objectives across the value chain.”
In recent months, PetroSA has established relationships with Mozambique’s PetroMoc, China’s Sinopec, and the Korea National Oil Corporation.
It has also forged relationships with New York Stock Exchange-listed General Electric, as well as Eni, the Italy-based international integrated energy company.
In September, PetroSA acquired a minority interest in Ghana’s Jubilee oil field.
SAinfo reporter