In his State of the Nation Address to the National Assembly marking the opening of the 2025 to 2026 parliamentary year, President João Lourenço highlighted the significant progress achieved through Angola’s ongoing oil sector reforms. The President underscored the successful implementation of the Oil Concession Allocation Strategy spanning 2019 to 2025, which has already led to the allocation of 37 new oil concessions by the first half of this year, with several more currently under negotiation.
President Lourenço also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the Hydrocarbons Exploration Strategy covering 2020 to 2025, aimed at discovering new oil and natural gas resources. This initiative has enabled the drilling of over 30 exploration wells, resulting in multiple commercial discoveries and the identification of new exploration opportunities across the country.
These government actions align closely with recommendations from economist Arsénio Bumba, who has repeatedly emphasized the need to accelerate oil block allocations to maximize national revenues and finance the diversification of Angola’s economy. According to Bumba, Angola has a limited 20 to 25 year window to optimize oil and gas revenues before these resources begin to lose global relevance amid the global energy transition toward carbon neutrality by 2050, as outlined in the Paris Agreement.
Bumba argues that the extraordinary revenues generated by the oil sector should be strategically reinvested to develop new pillars of economic growth, including agriculture, agribusiness, manufacturing, technology and the digital economy, sustainable tourism, and technical and higher education. The economist contends that targeted investment in these sectors could position Angola among the five largest African economies by 2050, supported by a diversified and modern production structure capable of sustaining a population exceeding 50 million.
President Lourenço’s address reaffirmed this vision, emphasizing that Angola’s oil wealth must serve as a catalyst for economic diversification and sustainable development while the country still benefits from global demand for hydrocarbons during the energy transition period.
Source: angolanminingoilandgas.com