Sandwiched between Cameroon and Gabon, Equatorial Guinea has become the fifth largest crude oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa after Nigeria, Angola, Gabon and Congo (Brazzaville).

The rich discoveries have attracted growing international investment interest and the US $5 billion understood to have been invested in the country’s oil and gas sector in the last decade seems likely to double in the next few years.

Murray & Roberts has worked hard at developing a relationship with US company Marathon Oil, a key player in Equatorial Guinea’s gas industry. Marathon Oil operates the Alba gas and condensate field off Equatorial Guinea’s Bioko Island and, together with partners, is developing several gas utilisation projects on the island.

Murray & Roberts’ involvement with Marathon started with a jobbing role in which it supplied plant and human resources for the Alba expansion project on Bioko Island. The project has subsequently grown, providing Murray & Roberts with new opportunities to demonstrate its capability and bid for additional projects valued at approximately $100 million.

Marathon Oil’s current portfolio has projects worth about $1 billion, including construction of a liquefied natural gas plant on Bioko Island. Murray & Roberts is well positioned to participate in these projects, having established its reputation as an “African contractor”, able to deliver world class solutions to clients’ requirements in harsh environments.

“We have been working with Marathon Oil for a year, we understand the conditions and our delivery record has been very good,” says Stephen Pell, a director of Murray & Roberts Limited.

“Our team has been able to mobilise people and plant in record time and has integrated local labourers into project teams fast and efficiently by transferring skills and applying strict health and safety standards.”

He adds that all of this has been achieved in a tropical jungle environment, with mountainous, wooded and rocky terrain and the constant challenges of pythons, flying monkeys, malaria and river blindness.

Lesley Lambert

Equatorial Guinea:

• Major trading partners: USA, Japan, Spain, China, Nigeria, Cameroon, France
• Environment: The country is made up of two provinces –  Bioko Island lies 40km off the coast of Cameroon in the Bight  of Biafra. Rio Muni, the much larger area, lies on the mainland coast between Cameroon to the north and Gabon to the south and east.

Equatorial Guinea is thick with vegetation. Being an extinct volcano, Bioko has extremely rich soil, encouraging the rapid growth of trees and vines. Farmers spend much of their time keeping the ever-encroaching vines from overwhelming their cocoa plantations. Rio Muni, having been largely bypassed by the 20th century, is equally thick with vegetation and boasts an abundance of wildlife, including elephants, lions and gazelle.

Equatorial Guinea is a rainy, tropical country. On the mainland, rainfall is light and peaks from April to May and from October to December.