Review of oil sector ordered

President João Lourenço of Angola ordered a 30-day review of the nation's oil industry last month to address the "significant" challenges it faces, his first foray into the key business since he took office in September.

He directed a working group to determine how it can "improve the current conditions of investment in the oil and gas industry," and develop a "framework of cooperation" directly between the executive and oil companies.

The move, announced in a decree on October 13, came as Lourenço appointed Carlos Saturnino, a former head of Sonangol P&P, as secretary of state for oil. The president merged the ministries for oil and mining into one group, led by Diamantino Azevedo.

The working group will be led by the ministry of mining and petroleum resources and will include representatives of the finance ministry, Sonangol, the presidency and one representative from the Angolan divisions of oil majors BP, Chevron, ENI, Exxonmobil, Statoil and Total.

"Lourenço wants to impose his own approach to oil reform and, with the new commission, accelerate measures to improve ongoing tensions with oil majors, which do not appear to have been sufficiently addressed by Sonangol's current management," said HIS analyst Roderick Bruce. – Nampa/Reuters