Daily Archives: March 6, 2023

Africa Blog

Turtle Ahmeim gas field is shared between Mauritania and Senegal

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Turtle Ahmeim gas field is shared between Mauritania and Senegal: The crisis between Dakar and Nouakchott seems to have been buried by the signing of an intergovernmental cooperation agreement on the management of the Great Turtle Ahmeyin gas complex in Nouakchott. An agreement that should facilitate the start of the exploitation of a field whose reserves are estimated at 450 billion cubic meters of gas and which straddles the territorial waters of both countries.

Turtle Ahmeim gas field is shared between Mauritania and Senegal.

The crisis between Dakar and Nouakchott seems to have been buried by the signing of an intergovernmental cooperation agreement on the management of the Great Turtle Ahmeyin gas complex in Nouakchott. An agreement that should facilitate the start of the exploitation of a field whose reserves are estimated at 450 billion cubic meters of gas and which straddles the territorial waters of both countries.

British oil giant “BP” (BP) has announced new developments in the “Turtle – Ahim Al-Kabir” LNG project off the coast of Mauritania and Senegal.

BP, the world’s third largest private oil company, said that the floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel has begun its cruise in the region.

The British oil company is conducting a series of sea trials on the vessel ahead of its commissioning, as it sailed this weekend from the Chinese city of Qidong to Singapore.

BP is counting on the floating production, storage and offloading vessel to become a major part of the development of the Ahim LNG project, which includes missions including the development of subsea gas fields and near-shore floating LNG facilities.

In addition, the vessel, which was built three years ago, will process natural gas by removing condensate, water and other impurities before it is pushed through the pipeline to gas facilities 10 kilometers offshore.

According to the company, the vessel will process approximately 500 million cubic feet of gas per day.

In this regard, BP’s deputy in charge of projects in Mauritania and Senegal, Rahman Rakhmonov, said that work is underway to “develop one of the most unique and innovative gas projects in the world”.

And he added that the floating production, storage and offloading vessel is the most important element of the project, and that the “successful navigation” of the vessel “testifies to the very important partnership with contractors Cosco Shipping and Technip Energies”.

On the other hand, Gordon Pearl, BP’s executive vice president of production and operations, praised the “continued support” of the Mauritanian hydrocarbon company, and its Senegalese counterpart.

Ahimim field

It should be noted that Mauritania and Senegal signed in 2020, in the Senegalese capital, Dakar, an agreement to buy and sell gas in the Ahim project, after years of disagreement.

The volume of gas exports during the first phase of operation of this field amounts to about 2.5 million tons per year, including the production of both countries, while about 70 million cubic feet per day of gas will be allocated for consumption in local markets of the two countries.

The field was discovered in 2016 and is considered the largest gas field in West Africa, with reserves amounting to 450 billion cubic meters of liquefied gas.

It is also one of the largest prospective gas fields discovered in the world, and is expected to change the course of the economies of Mauritania and Senegal.

The field is located 120 miles offshore and has a depth of 2,800 meters.

“Bir Allah” and clean alternatives

Although Mauritania currently produces only 5,000 barrels of oil and small amounts of gas, government officials have confirmed more than once that their country is in a position to enter the club of gas exporting countries within a few years.

In addition to the “Turtle – Ahmeim Al-Kabir” field, which is expected to start exporting its gas by the end of the current world, attention is also being paid to the “Bir Allah” field, whose reserves are estimated at more than 80 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

And last October, the Mauritanian government signed a contract with the British company “BP” and the American “Cosmos Energy” to explore and produce gas in the field located 60 km from Ahmeim.

In addition to investments in fossil fuels, the country has developed an energy transition strategy in several phases: the first phase focuses on the development of traditional energy projects that have been discovered (such as the floating field “Ahmim”/shared with Senegal) and the onshore field “Bir Allah”. 2027 to 2030 is the beginning of green hydrogen projects.

Mauritania has signed a partnership agreement to develop a green hydrogen production project with the British company Chariot Limited and the French energy giant Total Erin, with the aim of including the country in the ranks of hosts of clean energy projects.

Future Leadership Academy of Africa

Congo Basin countries call for $100 billion in “climate finance” per year

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At the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow last year 2021, developed countries pledged $1.5 billion to finance the protection and management of the Congo Basin forests, a commitment that has not yet been met, although it is far below the funding needs of Central African countries. Congo Basin countries call for $100 billion in “climate finance” per year.

Congo Basin countries call for $100 billion in “climate finance” per year

At the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow last year 2021, developed countries pledged $1.5 billion to finance the protection and management of the Congo Basin forests, a commitment that has not yet been met, although it is far below the funding needs of Central African countries.

At the recent COP27 climate summit in Egypt, the Central African Forest Commission (COMIFAC) denounced the unfulfilled promises of COP26, according to Africa 21 (afrik21).

Central African countries are demanding $100 billion in funds to preserve the forests of the Congo Basin, according to information consulted by the energy platform.

The impact of climate change in Africa

The Central African Forestry Commission was one of the angry parties at the COP27 climate conference, which was held from November 6 to 20, 2022 in the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The organization, which works for the conservation and sustainable and coordinated management of forest ecosystems in Central Africa, did not receive the funds promised at the conference in Glasgow, Great Britain, from 1 to 12 November 2021.

Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in November 2021 on the sidelines of COP 26 that more than 10 countries, the Bezos Land Fund and the European Union had signed a pledge in the Congo Basin that would raise more than $1.5 billion to protect the second largest rainforest. in the world The world’s major carbon reservoirs.

“Since then, we haven’t seen significant progress. It is time to push, because Africa is suffering enormously from the impact of climate change,” said Jules Dorrit Ndongo, Cameroon’s Minister of Forestry and current president of COMIFAC.

Africa needs $144 billion a year to meet its energy and climate goals between 2026 and 2030, according to the International Energy Agency.

Tropical forests

The $1.5 billion – more than 980 billion CFA francs – pledged by the Nordic countries in 2021 is aimed at developing the efforts of indigenous peoples and local communities in the protection of tropical forests, an amount that is insufficient in view of the climate emergency, seasonal disturbances, floods and drought. sources, the advance of the desert, and other climatic phenomena that the inhabitants of this part of the brown continent have been regularly experiencing in recent years.

Africa is experiencing the worst effects of climate change, even though it is the continent that contributes the least to carbon emissions, as its citizens are exposed to more flooding, higher temperatures, coastal erosion, land degradation, and other climate shocks every year.

To preserve their tropical forests, Central African countries need much more than the $1.5 billion pledged by Northern countries at COP26.

The forest ministers of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECAS), at their meeting in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, on October 5, 2022, prior to the 27th session of the Conference of the Parties, set a new financial target for the international community, amounting to $100 billion per year.

Congo Basin

The importance of the need for climate finance for Central African countries can be underlined by the contribution of the Congo Basin to maintaining the global climate balance.

According to COMIFAC data, the Congo Basin, which covers 11 Central African countries, has 24 million hectares of managed forests, of which 5.3 million hectares are certified.

Congo Basin countries call for $100 billion in “climate finance” per year

Its deforestation rate is estimated at less than 1%, making it one of the 3 largest tropical forest basins, with an average greenhouse gas emission of 530 million tons and an average carbon absorption of 1.1 billion tons.

More than 100 world leaders have pledged to end deforestation by 2030, with nearly £14 billion ($19.2 billion) in public and private funding.

Africa Blog

Top 20 Football Clubs in Africa

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Top 20 Football Clubs in Africa: Soccer in Africa works a special magic on the continent. It allows thousands of young people to dream, to project themselves, but also to be happy.

Soccer in Africa works a special magic on the continent. It allows thousands of young people to dream, to project themselves, but also to be happy. Here are the best African clubs.

For millions of people, sport is an important dimension of their lives, beyond entertainment, it gives them an identity and a sense of belonging. It gives them happiness and a rare feeling of euphoria (depending on the outcome, of course). It is also a source of catharsis in Africa, and creates an important distraction from the problems that ordinary people feel they cannot change.

Soccer is one of the few areas where an African child can find African heroes of international stature. Samuel Eto’o of Cameroon, Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast, and Nwankwo Kanu of Nigeria – to name a few – are individuals who have given African youth a reason to aspire.

African soccer between immobility and extroversion

African footballers have been recruited by European clubs for a long time. Since the 1930s, many players from the Maghreb have been recruited by French clubs. For example, the “black pearl” Larbi Ben Barek arrived in Marseille on June 28, 1938, from the Moroccan club US de Casablanca, where French clubs were accustomed to discovering talent (Zatelli, Janin, Fontaine, Chicha, the Mahjoub brothers).

It was in the 1950s that the first players were recruited directly from French West African countries: “A handful around 1955, there were 43 in 1960. In the 1950s, Portuguese clubs also began to recruit players from their colonies in Africa: “At the beginning of the 1960s, the importation of Africans was almost at the same level as in France, with thirty players in the clubs of the first level of competition.

As in France, they are sometimes also employed in the national team, like the Mozambicans Eusebio and Mario Esteves Coluña.

The steady increase in the proportion of foreign-based players in national teams is part of a growing recruitment of African players by clubs around the world, particularly in Europe and the Persian Gulf. According to a statistical study conducted for the 2002-2003 season, there were 1,156 African professional footballers in European clubs, representing about 18% of the total number of players present who have migrated internationally.

Ranking of the best African clubs

African clubs are trying to keep their players despite the attraction of professionalism elsewhere and the financial gains that go with it. The ranking of the top African clubs shows a dominance of North Africa.

According to the Confederation of African Football (CAF), here is the list of the best clubs this season:

  1. Al-Ahly (Egypt): 1730 points
  2. Wydad Casablanca (Morocco): 1664 pts
  3. Esperance of Tunis (Tunisia): 1602 pts
  4. Raja Casablanca (Morocco): 1584 pts
  5. RS Berkane (Morocco): 1579 pts
  6. Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa): 1557 pts
  7. TP Mazembe (DRC): 1548 pts
  8. Zamalek (Egypt): 1544 pts
  9. Pyramids (Egypt): 1528 pts
  10. Etoile du Sahel (Tunisia): 1512 pts
  11. Orlando Pirates (South Africa): 1510 pts
  12. Horoya AC (Guinea) 1503 pts
  13. Petro de Luanda (Angola) 1503 pts
  14. Simba SC (Tanzania): 1492 pts
  15. ES Setif (Algeria): 1490 pts
  16. CR Belouizdad (Algeria): 1487 pts
  17. JS Kabylie (Algeria): 1486 pts
  18. Kaizer Chiefs (South Africa): 1479 pts
  19. Al-Hilal (Sudan): 1478 pts
  20. Al-Masry (Egypt): 1470 pts