Italian oil company Eni has unveiled plans to increase by 30% its oil production in Congo, now estimated at 85,000 barrels a day.
“We are planning to increase significantly our production by at least 30% in the next four years,” the Group’s deputy managing director, Paolo Scaroni, said after meeting with Congolese President Denis Sassou Nguesso here on Monday.
“For the moment we are producing 85,000 barrels daily. We are by far the most dynamic company in Congo,” he added.
Eni, which is the second oil operator in Congo after French Group Total, has also announced plans . to support the Congolese government in implementing development programmes, mainly in palm-tree growing for producing cooking oil and for bio-diesel production.
Congo is targeting an oil production of 105 million barrels for 2008, against 97 million barrels last year and 87 million barrels in 2006.
Oil is Congo’s leading export and accounts for over 70% of the state budget.
