Chariot, Vivo Energy to develop gas-to-industry market in Morocco
Africa-focused Chariot has entered into a partnership agreement with Vivo Energy to create a midstream joint venture that will oversee the distribution of natural gas to industrial customers in Morocco, it said on May 2.
Vivo is the distributor of fuels and lubricants and has a long-standing presence in Morocco’s petroleum products sector, operating a network of over 400 service stations and supplying commercial and industrial customers across a number of sectors in the country.
“Morocco’s significant industrial gas demand, which this partnership will supply into, further supports the commercial viability of the Anchois project,” Adonis Pouroulis, Chariot CEO, commented. “This agreement confirms the priority given by Chariot to the Moroccan energy market, expands upon our other existing sales negotiations around future offtakes for the gas from the Anchois gas field and sets out a collaborative partnership with one of the continent’s leading energy distributors, as we continue to develop this high margin low risk asset.”
Anchois was found in 2009, and was initially estimated to hold in excess of 1 trillion ft3 of contingent and prospective gas resources. Chariot has a 75% interest in the Lixus licence containing the discovery, while ONHYM has 25%.
The project got a boost in January 2022 when the partners found even more gas at the site after drilling a second well. Its resources have since been independently assessed at 1.4 trillion ft3.
“Further development of the country’s mid and downstream infrastructure will also facilitate the distribution and increased use of this important domestic resource over the longer term as the industrial gas markets continue to mature,” Stan Mittelman, Vivo Energy CEO, commented.