Africa Oil & Gas Legal Summit 2015 set for South Africa in February

The Africa Oil & Gas Legal Summit 2015 along will be held in the last week of February in Johannesburg, South Africa in an inaugural event that will convene Energy Ministers, legal experts and industry players from the oil and gas ecosystem, ranging from oil majors and national oil companies, equipment and technology suppliers, investors, energy sector associations, financial service providers and academics.

Summit highlights include the Ministerial Keynotes & Panel session featuring: Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, Minister of Energy & Petroleum, Ghana; H.E. Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines, Industry & Energy, Equatorial Guinea; H.E. Djerassem Le Bemadjie, Minister of Petroleum & Energy, Chad; and H.E. Eric Williams, Former Minister of Energy of Trinidad & Tobago.

Delegates will also recieve legal updates from emerging and active oil jurisdictions including updates on South Africa, Tanzania, Mozambique, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Chad, Kenya, Angola and Nigeria.

Critical issues on managing oil and gas agreements, joint ventures, cross-border and nationalisation concerns, negotiation techniques, ethics and corruption, cross cultural considerations and other pertinent issues will also be discussed by a panel of legal experts.

In the line-up of industry speakers from Strategic Fuel Fund Association, Central Energy Fund Group, Department of Energy, South Africa, Government of the Republic of Angola, Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation, Empresa Nacional De Hidrocarbonetos, Mozambique, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation,  Energy Regulatory Commission, Kenya, and many others.

The event will also for the first time see attendees receive a -Summit Masterclass conducted by legal experts.

“Drawing on decades of industry experience, the Masterclass presenters will identify major issues and challenges facing oil and gas law practitioners day-to-day and show how to most effectively and efficiently deal with them,” says Senior Counsel Norman J. Nadorff one of the speakers at the event.
Sponsors at the event include This the pan-African corporate law conglomerate Centurion Law Group as Premium Knowledge Partner and by global law firm White & Case as Silver Sponsor.

“As investment within Africa’s oil and gas industry continues to surge, the need for qualified expertise to understand the fast evolving legal landscape is greater than ever,” says NJ Ayuk, Centurion Law Firm’s managing partner. “The Summit brings together the continent’s premier legal minds and political leaders to discuss issues across the oil and gas spectrum.”

According to the organizers the summit will also provide an excellent opportunity for integration between -to-Government, Government-to-Industry, and company-to-company.

“This Summit will provide an excellent opportunity for Government-to-Government, Government-to-Industry, and company-to-company informational exchanges on recent developments in Africa Oil and Gas Law, issues and challenges. Get clarity on regulatory compliance and mitigate risks. This is an important strategy summit for both Governments and oil and gas companies on likely regulatory changes and enforcement developments,” says Magenta Global CEO Ms Maggie Tan.

The Legal Summit comes at an exciting time for Africa’s oil and gas industry as it continues its stride in becoming a global oil and gas powerhouse amid challenging conditions of declining oil prices.

Africa supplies approximately 11% and 7% to global oil and gas demand respectively, and contains 10% of the world’s proven oil and gas reserves.