Republic of Congo's Energy Industry

Republic of Congo: New Projects and New Production

The Republic of Congo’s oil and gas industry produces the third-largest volume of crude in sub-Saharan Africa. The nation produces mainly oil, with only small amounts of natural gas and condensate liquids. As a net exporter of crude, the majority of the country’s revenues are dependent on fluctuations in oil prices. The OPEC member has long attempted to make the market attractive to foreign IOCs to continue to keep up with its traditional strong production growth.

The country’s hydrocarbons sector is dominated by NOC SNPC Congo, which is the exclusive concessionaire of E&P permits. The State-run company has been joined by many IOCs participating in the upstream sector, including TotalEnergies, Chevron, Perenco and Eni. Independents also play a role in the tapping into the country’s resources. Most producing fields are now offshore, including the prolific Mondo Nord field development.

To curb the country’s reliance on export prices, plans have been made to upgrade its power generation and refining capacity. “The government values the economic diversification of the country and plans to leverage this,” Jean-Marc Thystère Tchicaya, former minister of hydrocarbons for the Republic of Congo, told The Energy Year. “Apart from the use of gas for the production of electricity, the amount of which has been expanding in recent years, other aspects of gas valuation are being studied and offer more opportunities for monetisation.”

The USD 5-billion Congo LNG project is expected to reach a capacity of 3 million tonnes per year. First gas was introduced to the project’s first FLNG vessel, Tango, in December 2023 and the inaugural shipment from the facility was announced in late February 2024.