Offshore West Africa Conference Programme Announced
17th October 2014; Offshore West Africa is pleased to announce the conference programme and Pre-Show Guide for the 18th annual Conference & Exhibition which sees the event return to Accra, Ghana on 21– 23 January 2014.
After a successful 2013 event in Accra, Ghana, attracting an international audience of over 1,200 from 38 countries around the world, the premier technical forum for the West African offshore oil and gas exploration and production industry will return to Ghana in 2014 for the latest edition, after hosting this event in Accra in 2010, 2011 and 2013.
Offshore West Africa addresses key technology and development issues for the West African offshore oil and gas market, through a comprehensive educational program and three-day exhibition, under the conference theme – Expanding West Africa’s Offshore Potential.
We are pleased to present the 18th annual Offshore West Africa under the esteemed patronage of the Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Minister of Energy & Petroleum, Ministry of Energy & Petroleum, Ghana. The Honorable Minister will open the conference with a Welcome Address. It also is our pleasure to welcome to the Opening Session, Mr. Muntaga M. Sallah, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum, The Gambia.
The theme of the forthcoming Offshore West Africa, “Expanding West Africa’s Offshore Potential,” underscores the increasing interest in the region’s emerging hydrocarbon potential. Geologists believe the source rocks in the African side of the Equatorial Transform Margin are analogous to the prolific basins discovered in the presalt areas offshore Brazil. Recent drilling success offshore Ghana and Angola is spurring interest from major operators and independents alike, while the prospect of an extended petroleum system is opening up the possibilities to new African nations. Meanwhile, traditional shelf and deepwater areas offshore West Africa continues to provide a stable reserves base.
Under the guidance of Advisory Board Chairman, Theo Ahwireng, Manager of Geophysics, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, and committee members, OWA 2014 provides the tools and resources to offshore upstream industry professionals that are seeking new business opportunities in the West African region.
The two-track technical programme features presentations from leading industry operators and contractors on a variety of topics including:
· Regional Trends & Challenges
· Field Development
· Floating Production Systems
· Subsea Intervention
· Flowlines & Pipelines
· Deepwater Exploration
· Well Construction & Drilling Operations
· Operations & Logistics
· Local Content
Leaders of select national and international operating companies from the region will convene in a panel session format in the morning on the second day to share insights on the opportunities and challenges to develop West Africa’s expanding offshore opportunities.
The speaker line-up includes representatives from organizations including GNPC, Total E & P Nigeria, NNPC, Petroleum Commission Ghana, Chevron, Mobil producing Nigeria, ABS, DNV, Lloyd’s Register, Shell Petroleum, MODEC and many more.
Anchoring the program on the final day is the traditional local content panel discussion that always encourages lively debate. The panellists will share best practices, challenges, and strategies for growing local content in Ghana and the greater West African region. The Petroleum Commission is the key driver of local content and local participation in the oil and gas sector in Ghana and its session at Offshore West Africa will set out its current activities geared towards development and local content.
The accompanying exhibitions to the conference will present the technologies that are available and applicable to the industry for the exploitation of the abundant resources in the offshore West Africa. Confirmed sponsors to date include Lukoil, Shell, ABS, CPTDC, Petan, Ensco, GNPC and NNPC.
Offshore West Africa Conference & Exhibition brings together national and international operators and plays an important role in the expanding market of West Africa, with Ghana, a country at the centre of recent impressive offshore discoveries and home to some of the largest offshore projects in the region, playing host once again for the 2014 event.
