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Bloomberg
Ghana sees the country’s state-owned gas-station operator as the leading bidder to partner Exxon Mobil Corp. to explore for crude at an offshore field, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Exxon was awarded exploration and production rights for the Deepwater Cape Three Points block in January and must choose a local partner for a 5 percent stake before the permit will be ratified by parliament.
While Irving, Texas-based Exxon has the prerogative to award the holding, Ghana’s petroleum sector regulator and the Energy Ministry view Ghana Oil Co. as the most appropriate candidate because it can access capital through the state-owned money manager, the Social Security and National Insurance Trust, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they’re not authorised to speak publicly about the matter.
SSNIT owns a 25 percent stake in Goil, as the forecourt operator is known, according to data collected by Bloomberg.
The money manager has 9.9 billion cedis ($2.2 billion) in assets under management, Chief Executive Officer Hayford Atta Krufi said in September. Ghana Stock Exchange-listed Goil has a market value of 1.7 billion cedis and the government holds a 34 percent direct stake in the company.
“Following an extensive evaluation process, Exxon Mobil is in the process of finalising its selection of a local Ghanaian company with the government,†company spokeswoman Suann Guthrie said by email, declining to comment further.