Muzarabani oil and gas project enters new phase

Zim Now Writer

Zimbabwe’s oil and gas ambitions have taken a major step forward with the signing of a consolidated Production and Profit-Sharing Agreement between the Government and Invictus Energy, cementing the framework f the Muzarabani project.

The pact, described as a milestone in the country’s petroleum sector, sets out a predictable revenue-sharing, legal, and fiscal regime for the venture. The Ministry of Finance, Investment Promotion and Economic Development has also granted the project National Project Status, a designation expected to unlock new investment inflows.

Under the agreement, the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Zimbabwe will hold a 10 percent equity stake in the exploration phase without making any cash contribution. The State will also retain a back-in-right option to acquire its full entitlement if a commercial discovery is confirmed.

Invictus Energy, which has already confirmed the presence of oil and gas in the Muzarabani basin, drilled two exploratory wells in 2023, culminating in the landmark Mukuyu gas-condensate discovery. The company is now preparing to drill the Masomo One well, located east of Mukuyu, as it seeks to expand the resource base.

Preliminary studies suggest the basin could host as much as 9.25 trillion cubic feet of gas and nearly 300 million barrels of oil. Officials say the project could be transformative, reducing Zimbabwe’s reliance on fuel imports, earning foreign currency, creating jobs, and sparking the growth of downstream industries.