OPEC excited about Namibia partnership, offers support

WINDHOEK, April 24 (Reuters) - The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is excited about a potential partnership with Namibia and ready to support the southern African country in its oil journey, OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said on Wednesday.

The OPEC+ oil producers' group, having lost Angola and other players in recent years, is looking at Namibia for possible membership as it aims to start pumping oil by the next decade following a string of big discoveries.

"We are excited about the potential of the Namibian OPEC partnership and stand ready to offer support at this crucial juncture," Al Ghais said in a pre-recorded message at an international energy conference in Namibia.

"We are enthused by the discoveries in Namibia. Namibian oil and energy will be essential to meeting future demand."

TotalEnergies and Shell in recent years have made discoveries estimated at 2.6 billion barrels, setting the stage for the southern African country to plan production from about 2030.

Sources told Reuters earlier this month the initial focus for OPEC+ - the wider grouping that includes Russia - would be to see Namibia join its Charter of Cooperation, a group that engages in longer-term dialogue about energy markets and does not decide on output policy. OPEC did not comment at the time.

In addition to Total and Shell, firms including Chevron , Rhino Resources, Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas and Galp Energia are conducting exploration and appraisal activities.

"We encourage potential investors to look at Namibia and the abundance of possibilities here," OPEC's Al Ghais said.

Based on the existing discoveries, Namibia is looking at 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) of peak production capacity by the next decade, according to energy consultancy Rystad Energy.

That is smaller than Angola's output of about 1.1 million bpd, although Rystad noted Namibia's number could rise with more successful exploration. Angola quit OPEC in December last year in a dispute over output quotas. (Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Writing by Nellie Peyton and Alex Lawler; Editing by Alexander Winning and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)