TotalEnergies said on Monday it had made a hydrocarbon discovery on the Moho license offshore the Republic of the Congo, adding to a nearby find that together could hold close to 100 million barrels of recoverable resources.
The discovery was made by TotalEnergies EP Congo, which operates the license with a 63.5% stake. The MHNM-6 NFW exploration well, drilled on the Moho G structure, encountered a hydrocarbon column of about 160 meters in Albian reservoirs, with the company saying reservoir quality was good. It also carried out data acquisition and sampling to help evaluate the find and support a future development plan.
The key takeaway is not just the size of the discovery, but its location. TotalEnergies said the Moho G find, together with the previously announced Moho F discovery nearby, is expected to be developed as a tie-back to existing Moho infrastructure. That matters because using nearby floating production facilities can sharply reduce development costs and shorten the timeline to first output compared with a standalone project.
The Moho license already has established offshore production infrastructure, including the Alima and Likouf floating production units, which together currently produce around 90,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day on a gross basis. That gives TotalEnergies a ready-made route to commercialize the new barrels and fits a broader industry push toward lower-cost, shorter-cycle developments tied into existing hubs.
For Congo, the discovery reinforces the continued importance of offshore oil in sustaining production and attracting investment in mature basins. For TotalEnergies, it is another example of the company leaning on infrastructure-led exploration, where discoveries near producing assets can generate quicker, higher-return developments than frontier projects.
Nicola Mavilla, TotalEnergies’ senior vice president for exploration, said the proximity of the find to existing facilities supports a short-cycle, cost-effective development and could create additional value for the company.
Alongside TotalEnergies, the Moho license is held by Trident Energy with 21.5% and Congo’s state oil company SNPC with 15%.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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