Written by Shrikesh Laxmidas | From Reuters

 U.S. firm Cobalt International Energy has discovered significant quantities of oil offshore Angola, state oil firm Sonangol said, calling the find the biggest so far in the promising pre-salt layer in the Kwanza Basin.

Oil drillers hope discoveries under a deep submerged salt crust off Angola known as pre-salt may match the prolific finds beneath similar deposits off Brazil on the other side of the Atlantic in recent years.

Analysts say Angola, Africa’s No. 2 oil producer, could double its oil reserves, which are currently estimated at just under 13 billion barrels, if pre-salt drilling proves successful.

Drilling at Cobalt’s Orca-1 well in Block 20/11 reached a depth of 3,872 metres and has successfully produced over 3,700 barrels of oil and 16.3 million cubic metres of gas per day, Sonangol said in a statement on Thursday.

“The results … confirm the importance of the find, which is considered the biggest to date in the Kwanza basin,” it added.

Read more at Reuters