The news comes in the wake of Angola’s departure from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in December 2023. Credit: Chris worldwide/Shutterstock.

China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is dispatching a team of top executives to Angola to explore new oil exploration opportunities, reported Reuters.  

This development comes as Angola, one of Africa’s leading oil producers, seeks to strengthen its energy ties with China, a principal creditor and a crucial market for its oil exports. 

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Angolan authorities conveyed the nation’s desire to strengthen energy ties with China during President Joao Lourenco’s recent visit to Beijing. 

In a post on Facebook, the Angolan oil and gas ministry said: “In the coming days a delegation from CNOOC, led by Liu Yongjie, Chairman of CNOOC International, is set to travel to Angola to start discussions around block 24 and other oil exploration opportunities.” 

The visit, which saw a meeting between Angola’s oil minister and a CNOOC delegation, comes in the  wake of Angola’s departure from OPEC in December 2023.

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At the time, Angolan oil minister Diamantino Azevedo said that the OPEC is no longer aligned with the nation’s interests.  

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The departure reflects a growing trend among mid-sized oil producers with Ecuador and Qatar having also left the oil group in the past ten years.  

Angola had been a member of OPEC since 2007 but developed disagreements with Saudi Arabia over production cuts. 

President Lourenco has been actively reforming Angola’s energy sector, including the auctioning of multiple blocks and the construction of additional refining capacity.  

These efforts are part of the country’s plans o reverse the decline in its oil production.  

In a separate development, CNOOC announced a major discovery at the Kaiping South oilfield in the South China Sea earlier this month, with more than 100 million tonnes of oil equivalent proved in-place volume. 

Last month, CNOOC initiated production at the Suizhong 36-1/Luda 5-2 oilfield project in the Bohai Sea.