Malawi laws breached in oil search, says Attorney General
The three companies controlling five of the six oil and gas exploration blocks – Rak Gas, Pacific Oil and Hamra Oil Holdings Limited -are controlled by one group designed to get a Lions share of the oil blocks by using any trick in or outside the book, Attorney General (AG) Kalekeni Kaphale has noted in legal opinion to the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining.
Kaphale says the country’s laws were breached in the award of the now suspended oil and gas exploration licences in Lake Malawi and other parts of the country.
Rak Gas is owned by the Government of Ras Al Khaimah, one of the emirates of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and local company secretary is Z Allan Ntata while Hamra describes itself as a Cayman Island origin private company whose local general manager is Ben Chiza Mkandawire. Pacific Oil is part of Vega Petroleum Limited—the privately owned oil and gas entity that has oil producing and exploration concessions in Egypt.
Geologist Chimwemwe Chikusa was responsible for registering all three Arabic companies in Malawi.
In his legal advise, the Attorney General stated: “ We must cancel all the exploration licences or at a bare minimum, licences for blocks Four, Five and Six as having been entered into with parties that are related to Hamra Oil Limited, which has controlling interest in two blocks already as these are the maximum a party can get.”
In 2011, Blocks Two and Three were issued to Surestream Limited, which later farmed to Hamra Oil in a joint operating agreement and farming out agreement. Hamra now owns 51 percent equity in the blocks, according to the opinion.
Kaphale has suggested that government invites Hamra, Rak Gas and Pacific to choose “which two contiguous blocks they want to continue exploring and make them relinquish their interest in the rest.
The exploration of oil on Lake a Malawi is still a contentious issue as locals from the lake shore districts protest the move claiming the project has the potential to kill fish which they depend for a living while on the other side, there is still a heated argument which has not been resolved with neighbouring Tanzania which claims that half of the Lake is hers contrary to Malawi claims that she wholly own the Lake.
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Its sad that Malawi is falling apart with this we are calling all Chewa people to start thinking new thinking. We must establish or the call for the CHEWA NATION like the British we need to keep our culture and land from evaders from north and south. Malawi belong to the Chewa people
Malawians,leave the lake alone.We have tremendous amount of natural resources besides oil.Mind you,there are a number of states in Africa which produces oil,natural gas the list goes on.Nigeria is the fourth largest oil producing state globally others like Gabon,E.Guinea,Gambia,Angola etc.The most recent one being Angola,but it’s first operation according to the UN economic index ,it lost $6b which is highly believed that the funds went into private bank accounts.For the rest of the oil producing nations,brutal corruption has played a very destructive role which drove millions of their citizens into untold poverty.Malawi is home to many of these unfortunate brother… Read more »
Like the Kayelekera deals this is bullshit!
NOT EVEN SINGLE COMPANY SHOULD ALLOWED TO DEVASTATE OUR ONLY STATE WEALTH EXIST FOR BOTH RICH&POOR.YOU POLITICAL AVOID SUCH GIMMICKS TO SATISFY YOUR OWN NEEDS
there is no amount of printed paper (money) worth destroying probably the most beautiful freshwater lake in the world. why are politicians hell bent on destroying it? just like the government has just backtracked on the burning of the ivory and again become the laughing stock of the world. they don’t have the environment at heart at all. what beauty we leave behind for our children is the most important thing. forget the short term kwacha please be like the Chinese and think 50 years ahead. will we kill the lake? the risk survey says it’s highly probable if we… Read more »
The AG and the Primeminster are bunch of corrupt idiots , they have eaten well from the oil companies, now those companies have closed there taps and now they want punish them by revoking there licenses , what a bunch of poolikas , they will cost the country $billions , the oil companies came as investors now they are going to be Hijacked so that a few idiot benefit. What fool are theses crooks AG and Prime mister
Comment…..AMALAWI MUKUFUNA KUTI AKUHONGENI. MWINA MWADWA KALE. TIKUMUONANITU.
There is nothing like Ntata here. These companies are cheating. Kugona basi. Can’t you see it is the same company doing the same business using three different names? We are told even UAE government is involved.
Bwanji kugona aMalawi. Please Attorney General do your work. Don’t listen to these sleepy people. In fact, ensure that these companies do not send a lot of samples outside Malawi and give them time frame. Otherwise they will mining oil illegally.