Eight foreign and local firms have submitted bids to explore for oil in three provinces in Zambia, Godwin Beene, permanent secretary for the ministry of mines and minerals development said on Sunday.
Zambia, Africa’s top copper producer, invited bids from foreign companies for oil exploration in June after demarcating 23 oil blocks in its northwestern, western and eastern provinces.
Beene said in a statement foreign companies GP Petroleum and Petrodel Resources from the United Kingdom, Glint Energy from the United States and Exile Resources from Canada had submitted bids along with four Zambian firms.
“The Petroleum committee has begun analysing the bids and the minister of energy will announce the names of the successful bidders after the committee completes its work,” Beene said.
Beene said the successful bidders needed to demonstrate proven ability to raise the funds required for the projects, and also show they have assets, machinery, technical expertise, equipment and tools required to explore, produce and sell oil.
The bids were initially scheduled to close in August but the government extended the tendering period to allow more companies to submit their bids
Zambia does not produce oil, but the government says soil samples sent to European laboratories, have shown good traces of oil, particularly in areas bordering oil-producing Angola
[Reuters]
I have hearing this over and over for years and years now…….
Sorry, ‘ I have been’
Chili okotuleya tata
iliko ilko daddy…could this play on tata Kaunda’s oil from glass comrades…
….oil from grass…i beg to differ…
There is not a single African country on the eastern side that produces oil and one onders how Eastern province, Khumawa, found itself on the list! The terrain too clearly is mountaneous indicating that even if there was oil deposits, they will be very expensive to extract and we might even be better off got now to import from elsewhere than drill our own. The inclusion of Eastern is another point yet on the tribally bogoted demencia of Kanitundila’s governance of this country. It also says a lot about Sata’s appointment of Inonge, coming on the eve of this announcement, ********* muselela ukwa talala!
Oh please give us a break,that story only appears in an election time
The country is wide open under RB’s rule – let them all come in and quickly get what they can before Mugabe, oh sorry PF takes over.
This is a way for them to start mining in game parks. This should not be allowed. GRZ at least leave the game parks for future generations. You have sold everything and just concatrate on building us shopping malls so our wealth can be siphoned out more easily.
We are tired of this story
where there is oil, there is war. oil cursed
I pray Godwin Beene will maintain his professional intergrity and not fall into the lying and procrastinating psyche of the MMD government.
Why not mention the Zambian companies. Is there something fishy about them?
Guys, there is no oil in zambia, ask the USA, the most oil thursty nation who would have been cripping all over zambia had we oil. This is just a way of stealing manee by GRZ, organising workshops, seminars and allocating bugets for this old fiction story. Ask what the buget is every 4 or 5 years for “facilitating oil drilling”. it is about $1M. This is an old rouse by the con men in GRZ. Stop organising forums, seminars and forign trips to encurage oil exploration, there is no oil.
# 14, oil or no oil, the country will still be mismanaged by our politicians – especially the current crop in the MMD, PF and others. It’s about time the young technocrats came up with their own party. If there is oil, we’re likely to see more social strife and more thieving. Look at big brother Nigeria. Despite all its oil, Zambia is socially more hospitable to live in than that oil giant. Africa has this curse that just won’t go till it goes…Whatever that means.
Are we talking about Zambian oil or Angolan oil?
Yes, there’s oil in Angola. And yes, there’s a broken oil groove in Zambia. About time we converted to CDs. Time to award contracts for the non-delivery of CDs to Zambia. or maybe we’ll find them in kafupi’s warehouse, with Sata guarding the door with thirty-six pistols, as we saw at Mulungushi Rock the other year?
Oil is dangerous….#11 is right, with oil, comes war….we better be careful, ambia will not be an exception!
Jooste
Ambia loo! Do you work for ureau?
Guys wake up dont condemn everything oil is important for us .You foolish chaps you are enjoyng driving cars bought cheaply because the kwacha has stablised for the past 5 years.some of you never used to eat choko late to day you can eat from your nose.you like condeming but dull in your brains beacuse you dont offer solutions.
Lets wait and see , who knows that recently Uganda foumd oil. But lets watch with Eagle eyes so we dont get ripped off