Impact Oil & Gas restructuring positive development for Africa’s upstream sector, says AEC

UK-based private explorer Impact Oil & Gas is restructuring its business to become a more Namibia-centred exploration and development company, separating its South African exploration portfolio into a standalone structure. The move is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2026 and is supported by Meren Energy (TSX/Nasdaq-Stockholm:MER), one of Impact’s major shareholders.

The African Energy Chamber (AEC) described the restructuring as a positive development for Africa’s upstream sector, arguing that portfolio simplification can improve capital efficiency and speed up frontier project development. According to the AEC, the transaction strengthens investor confidence in Namibia’s Orange Basin while keeping South African exploration opportunities active under a separate structure.

Meren Energy, which holds a 39.5% indirect stake in Impact, said its effective exposure to Namibia’s key assets would remain unchanged while reducing operational complexity. The restructuring is intended to concentrate resources on higher-value opportunities, particularly the Venus project, and remove the financial burden associated with earlier-stage South African exploration.

At the centre of the transaction is a share purchase agreement between Impact and IOG Energies, a newly created subsidiary of its majority shareholder Deepkloof Limited, to transfer ownership of Impact Africa Limited, which holds its South African exploration licences, as previously reported by NewsBase.

Once the deal is completed, Impact will focus solely on its 9.5% participating interests in offshore Namibia’s Block 2912 and Block 2913B, located in the highly prospective Orange Basin. These blocks include exposure to the Venus light oil discovery, estimated to contain around 5.1 billion barrels of oil equivalent in recoverable resources.

The Venus development is operated by TotalEnergies (EPA/NYSE/LSE:TTE) alongside QatarEnergy and Namibia’s national oil company NAMCOR. The planned development concept includes a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) facility designed for production of roughly 150,000–160,000 barrels per day (bpd), potentially positioning Namibia as one of Africa’s emerging deepwater oil hubs.

A final investment decision (FID) on the Venus development is targeted for 2026, with first oil expected around 2030, subject to regulatory approvals and joint venture agreement. According to the AEC, negotiations with Namibian authorities around fiscal terms, gas management and development frameworks remain important to progressing the project.

“This is a positive step for Impact Oil & Gas. The restructuring allows them to refocus on exploration and return to what they do best in high-potential basins like Namibia’s Orange Basin,” AEC executive chairman NJ Ayuk said. “Importantly, it also creates space to push harder in South Africa, where the east coast position is highly prospective and could very well be the next Orange Basin.”

Impact continues to own approximately 20% of Africa Energy Corp (TSXV:AFE, Nasdaq First North:AFE) with a significant interest in the Brulpadda-1X and Luiperd-1X gas condensate discoveries on Block 11b/12b offshore South Africa, the company said in a statement, announcing the restructuring of its African portfolio.