AEC hails Sintana NSX bid as model for Africa
Canadian oil and gas company Sintana Energy has announced its intention to list on the Namibian Securities Exchange (NSX), drawing praise from the African Energy Chamber, which called the move a model for how the continent's energy sector should be structured to deliver benefits to citizens from the outset.
The company said the listing was part of a broader strategy to develop liquidity for Namibian investors, ensuring citizens could participate in the country's emerging oil and gas sector at the exploration stage rather than waiting for production to begin.
NJ Ayuk, executive chairman of the AEC, said Sintana's listing demonstrated that local ownership need not wait for first oil.
"Namibia is showing that local ownership does not have to wait until production, it can and should begin at the exploration stage. This is the kind of leadership and innovation we need to see across the continent," Ayuk said.
The AEC said the listing reflected the type of market-driven solutions needed to advance energy development across Africa, and that Sintana was aligning national economic interests with upstream growth by enabling local ownership through public market access.
Sintana has begun discussions with the NSX and has appointed IJG Securities as its sponsor and corporate advisor.
Knowledge Katti, a director of Sintana and chairman of Custos Energy, described the listing as more than a financial transaction, saying it represented an opportunity for Namibians — particularly young people — to build generational wealth and hold a direct stake in the energy sector.
Orange Basin exposure
The listing comes as Sintana advances several exploration programmes in Namibia's Orange Basin.
At petroleum exploration licence (PEL) 83, the project partners, TotalEnergies as operator, alongside Galp Energia and Sintana, recently revised contingent resources upward to 1.38 billion barrels of oil equivalent, a 57% increase from the previous estimate of 875 million barrels, reflecting the scale of the Mopane complex. A three-well drilling programme is planned for the second half of 2026, following TotalEnergies' farm-in earlier this year. A final investment decision is targeted for 2028, with first oil expected in 2032.
Sintana also holds a 7.4% indirect carried interest in PEL 87, which covers Blocks 2713A and 2713B and is operated by Pancontinental Energy. In March, the partners received government approval to extend the first renewal exploration period by 12 months to January 2027, during which they will conduct an environmental impact assessment, reprocess 3D seismic data and drill an exploration well.
