Navitas Petroleum has assumed operatorship of Block 1 CBK offshore South Africa following regulatory approval from the South African government and the completion of a farm-down by Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas.

Under the transaction, completed on September 22, Eco transferred operatorship and a 37.5 per cent working interest in the 19,929-square-kilometre block to Navitas.

The transaction gives Navitas operatorship of one of the Orange Basin’s major exploration assets, an increasingly prominent frontier region that has attracted international oil companies including Shell, TotalEnergies, bp and Galp following significant discoveries offshore Namibia since 2022.

Eco retains a 37.5 per cent interest in Block 1 CBK, while local partner OrangeBasin Energies holds 25 per cent.

Eco received $4 million in cash and will be carried by Navitas for up to $7.5 million of its share of the work programme.

The African Energy Chamber (AEC) welcomed the transaction, describing it as an important step toward advancing exploration and unlocking South Africa’s offshore oil and gas potential.

The chamber said the deal could help attract investment, strengthen energy security and create opportunities across the country’s energy value chain.

“South Africa has an opportunity to turn its offshore resource potential into investment, energy security, jobs and economic growth,” says NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman, AEC. “Partnerships that combine international capital and technical expertise with local participation can help move these resources toward development while creating wider opportunities across the African energy value chain.”

Block 1 CBK is located within the Orange Basin, adjacent to Namibia and near discoveries made by Galp Energia, TotalEnergies, Rhino Resources and Shell.

Three legacy wells on the block have already established a gas discovery, with tested flow rates of 32.4 million standard cubic feet per day.

An assessment conducted by Eco and Navitas in August 2026 estimated more than 3.6 billion barrels of unrisked prospective oil resources and around 4.5 trillion cubic feet of prospective gas resources across Block 1 CBK.

The partners are continuing advanced interpretation and reprocessing of existing seismic data to identify additional prospects and potential drilling targets.

The work programme includes two planned exploration wells, with the farm-down allowing Navitas to assume greater operational and expenditure responsibilities while Eco maintains exposure to the block’s exploration upside.

The agreement also provides a potential pathway for changes to the ownership structure.

 If an existing option with OrangeBasin Energies is fully exercised and Navitas acquires half of the additional interest, Eco and Navitas would each hold 47.5 per cent, while OrangeBasin Energies would retain a 5 per cent stake.

The transaction highlights the growing importance of farm-down arrangements in frontier exploration, enabling companies to share financial and operational risks while maintaining exposure to potentially significant resources.

For South Africa, successful exploration at Block 1 CBK could support domestic oil and gas supply while attracting international capital and generating demand for local services, technology and expertise.

The project also forms part of the broader exploration activity across the Orange Basin, which spans South African and Namibian waters.

With Navitas now assuming operatorship, the AEC said continued cooperation between the South African government, international operators, local companies and financial and technical partners will be important to advancing exploration and potentially converting the basin’s geological resources into investment and economic value. -OGN/TradeArabia News Service