Wedoany.com Report-Nov 9, Oil driller Perenco S.A., owned by the billionaire Perrodo family, will concentrate three quarters of its $2 billion investments next year in a handful of African countries as part of a strategy that includes more gas projects.

The group, which specializes in extracting crude from mature fields, derives most of its production from four nations in the center of the continent, including Gabon, with operations spanning 14 countries globally.

While output has dropped “a bit lower” from the half-a-million bpd level, Perenco will “continue to fight the decline, but now being very proactive in gas development and exploration,” Chief Executive Officer Armel Simondin, who took on the role in March, said in an interview in Cape Town.

“As part of the transition, gas has really a key role to play and basically that’s really a very important part of the strategy going forward.”

Gabon, which accounts for almost a quarter of the company’s production, will draw a chunk of the annual spend for the construction of pipelines that will cross the nation. The network will connect to a planned small-scale liquefied natural gas plant that will produce 700,000 tons a year, Simondin said.

“We believe that there is a lot of untapped gas reserve along the coast of Africa that could be targeted with this kind of development.”

Perenco will also spend more in Congo, following the acquisition of oil assets from Eni SpA last year. The company has ongoing discussions with the government to extend existing licenses and is in early-stage talks “with other majors to take over more assets,” which should happen soon, the CEO said.

The Perrodo family has diversified its investments, but Perenco’s oil and gas production remains key “because it’s a core business,” Simondin said.