Latest news with #internationalinvestment
Zawya
14-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
African Energy Week (AEW) 2025 to Outline African Block Opportunities Amid Surge in 2024/2025 Licensing Rounds
Africa is gearing up to attract a wave of investment in exploration blocks, with a surge in oil and gas licensing rounds being launched during the 2024/2025 period. According to the African Energy Chamber's State of African Energy 2025 Outlook Report ( these efforts are part of a broader strategy to unlock the continent's untapped energy potential, attract international investment and stimulate long-term economic growth. This year's African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies conference will spotlight Africa's licensing rounds, connecting operators to emerging blocks opportunities across the continent. North Africa Libya launched its latest licensing round in March 2025, offering 22 onshore and offshore exploration blocks across the Sirte, Murzuq and Ghadames basins. The licensing round has already drawn interest from 37 prospective companies, with contracts with successful bidders expected to be signed by the end of the year. Representing the country's first licensing round since 2011, the initiative comes as Libya seeks to increase production to two million barrels per day. Algeria awarded five licenses in June 2025 as part of its latest oil and gas bid round. Launched in November 2024, the bid round featured sic onshore blocks for competitive bidding and falls part of a broader multi-year licensing strategy aimed at attracting global investment in exploration opportunities. The blocks span five basins and represents a core component of the country's strategy to invest up to $50 billion into hydrocarbon projects over the next four years. Egypt launched a new bid round in March 2025, comprising 12 investment opportunities. The bid round includes 10 offshore blocks in the Mediterranean Sea and two onshore blocks in the Nile Delta region and comes as the country intensifies exploration across undeveloped acreage. West Africa Sierra Leone is preparing to launch a new licensing round in 2025 as part of its drive to fast-track exploration and become an oil-producing nation. The country currently has around 50 offshore blocks available for direct negotiation, spanning 63,000 km² and backed by a proven petroleum system. The upcoming licensing round will further entice spending. Nigeria is set to launch a new oil and gas licensing round in 2025, focusing on undeveloped fields. The upcoming round follows the successful conclusion of a 2024 tender, whereby 25 companies were awarded Petroleum Prospecting Licenses. Liberia also initiated a Direct Negotiation Licensing Round in 2024, with 29 offshore blocks available for investment in the Liberia and Harper basins. The licensing round seeks to drive new investment in the country's frontier basins and is supported by an extensive library of multi-client subsurface data, including over 24,000 kilometers of 2D seismic data and more than 26,000 km² of 3D seismic data. East Africa Tanzania is preparing to offer new oil and gas exploration opportunities with a licensing round launching in 2025. A total of 26 blocks will be made available, including three blocks in Lake Tanganyika and 23 in the Indian Ocean. The country's upstream regulator the Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority has already identified the blocks and compiled the necessary data for the process. Following government approval for the Model Production Sharing Agreement, the licensing round will be launched. The round represents the first in more than ten years. Additionally, Kenya is expected to launch its inaugural oil and gas licensing round in September 2025, offering ten blocks for exploration. The blocks were selected using geoscientific data to ensure a transparent allocation process. The licensing round is supported by comprehensive seismic surveys and geological reports, thereby supporting future exploration activities. Primary targets include the Lamu and Anza basins, both of which are known for their hydrocarbon potential. Uganda is also set to launch a licensing round during the 2025/2026 fiscal year, offering new areas for oil and gas exploration. Southern Africa Part of its six-year licensing strategy, Angola is expected to launch its next licensing round in 2025, offering ten blocks for exploration in the offshore Kwanza and Benguela basins. The bid round follows the successful conclusion of a 2023 tender, whereby nine companies qualified as operators and five qualified as non-operators. Namibia rolled out an open-door licensing system in 2024 to address its backlog of applications and streamline procedures. The system comes as the country experiences a surge in exploration interest following major discoveries made since 2022. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
Arab News
30-06-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Qatari emir, Spanish king meet on sidelines of UN investment conference in Seville
LONDON: Qatari emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, met King Felipe VI of Spain in Seville on the sidelines of a UN-organized international investment conference. The 4th International Conference on Financing for Development began on Monday and will continue until July 3, bringing together global leaders to discuss urgent reforms necessary for financing sustainable development. King Felipe expressed his desire to strengthen relations and support joint investments through small and medium-sized enterprises following the recent economic agreements between Qatar and Spain. He also reiterated Spain's solidarity with Qatar and condemned the Iranian attack on Al-Udeid Air Base last week, praising Doha's role in facilitating a ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel. Sheikh Tamim emphasized Qatar's commitment to enhancing cooperation with Spain across cultural, educational and security fields to serve the common interests of both countries, the Qatar News Agency reported.
BBC News
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Jon Petrie calls for producers to 'focus on the funny' as he warns that the opportunities for international investment for scripted comedy are becoming increasingly rare
Director of BBC Comedy Jon Petrie has warned that the opportunities for international investment to significantly plug the gap for scripted comedy are becoming increasingly rare. Speaking at the BBC Comedy Festival in Belfast, Jon said the TV comedy industry had been dazzled by the drama investment model, but the market reality meant that the period of Peak TV was unsustainable. Jon said: 'The opportunities for international investment to significantly plug the gap for scripted comedy are becoming increasingly rare. This might seem at odds with what I said back in 2022 about co-producing with our American friends. That door hasn't closed entirely - but it's always been narrower for comedy, and with a wider reset happening in our industry, we need to face reality head-on. 'We all got dazzled by the drama investment model - which was understandable, given the pace of change. Brilliant shows like The Outlaws and Starstruck showed what's possible when comedy attracts drama-level investment. I'm immensely proud of these shows. 'But let's be honest about the market reality – that period of Peak TV was unsustainable. Meanwhile, production costs have skyrocketed across the board, and pure comedy - the kind that defines the UK's cultural identity - simply doesn't command the same co-production interest as its glossier comedy-drama cousins.' He also pointed to research which shows that it is possible that award-winning, popular comedy can be made on a BBC budget alone. 'It's proven that popular, award-winning, comedy can be made on a BBC budget alone. The data backs up what we've always suspected - people connect with great characters and writing, not budget.' Jon said: 'We must constantly ask: 'Does this specific spend make it funnier?' We can't out-budget global streamers, but we can be smarter and funnier and speak to UK audiences more directly.' He highlighted recent successes for BBC Comedy including Gavin & Stacey: The Finale, which was the highest rated comedy since records began in 2002; Alma's Not Normal, which recently won a BAFTA for scripted comedy; Amandaland and Ludwig. And he asked producers and creatives to develop differently by thinking of cost from the moment of conception. 'And if we keep our comedy affordable and distinctive - we won't just weather this moment. We'll shape what comes next - and make it funnier, sharper, and unmistakably ours.' The BBC Director of Comedy, who has previously spoken about the importance of sitcoms, praised those who work in the scripted comedy TV industry for consistently finding brilliance even when resources were tight. 'Our focus now must be on channelling that resourcefulness smartly. Less about 'papering over cracks' and more about being strategically focused so we can make distinctive and more about being strategically focused so we can make distinctive, impactful comedy for the long haul.' 'Think about what people actually share online. The moments that go viral aren't expensive set pieces - they're laugh-out-loud writing and performances. Amandaland and Am I Being Unreasonable clips spread across social media week after week. The last Cunk special had a total of 185 million global views across our key social platforms. He committed to keep pushing for the comedy tax credit: 'We'll keep fighting for the comedy tax credit and working with the comedy community to make the economics stack up,' he said. 'But in the meantime, in every meeting with writers, producers, directors - the question has to be: does more money make it more funny? 'If it doesn't – it's not worth the spend. Because in the end, audiences watching comedy don't care how it was made. They care if it made them laugh. LH2
