Portugal's Galp said, a fifth well at its Mopane concession off Namibia has found "significant columns" of light oil, which could "unlock further exploration and appraisal opportunities" in the southeast region of the block, in an update Feb. 25. The well in PEL83, which was spudded Jan. 2, has been drilled, cored and logged. The fifth well, 18 kilometers (11 miles) from the first Mopane-1X well, targeted two stacked prospects, AVO-10 and AVO-13 in the southeast region of the Mopane complex, at around 1,200 meters of water depth. "Preliminary data confirm light oil and gas-condensate significant columns across AVO-10, and light oil columns on AVO-13 and on the deeper sand, in high-quality sandstones," Galp said. "The reservoir's log measures confirm good porosities, high pressures and high permeabilities. Initial fluid samples show low oil viscosity and minimum CO2 and H2S concentrations." The proprietary 3D development seismic acquisition campaign is on track to be completed in the first quarter of 2025, it said. The development sits in the prolific Orange Basin, which hosted the Venus and Graff discoveries by TotalEnergies and Shell respectively in early 2022. The finds put Namibia on the map, saw a string of companies drill new wells and saw the country compared with Guyana. Galp, with 80%, is the operator of Mopane, together with its partners NAMCOR and Custos who hold 10% each. The first three wells at the site reported positive results, while a fourth reported "thin net pay." A sixth well is planned to be drilled in the summer of 2025, after which the company expects to farm down as much as half of its stake. Mopane, which is among the country's key oil prospects, could come online in 2030 and plateau at 211,000 boe/d in 2037, according to Platts' projections, which alone would make Namibia a significant oil producer. The company estimates 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent in place. Forecasts from Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, suggest the African country's first oil could come from TotalEnergies' Venus project in 2029. Positive news from the closely watched Mopane concession follows disappointing recent developments for Namibia's emerging oil sector, including a $400-million write-down by Shell on its key acreage and a dry well drilled by Chevron.