The current global energy crisis, intensified by Iran’s blockade of oil and gas cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz, received some relief earlier this week as BP began gas production from the Quiluma field in Angola.
BP confirmed the start‑up as part of the New Gas Consortium (NGC), operated by Azule Energy, marking a fresh boost to alternative supply sources as markets grapple with tightening global flows.
This milestone continues the strong delivery of project start-ups and exploration discoveries for Azule Energy – a 50:50 joint venture between BP and Italy’s ENI (Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi or National Hydrocarbons Authority).
Considered a supermarket energy company, its market capitalisation on December 31, 2024 was €40 billion. The company is part of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.
ENI was originally a state‑owned entity created in 1953. Today, its an integrated energy company operating globally in oil, gas, LNG, renewables and low‑carbon technologies.
BP said it expects initial production from the Quiluma field around 150 million standard cubic feet (mmscf) per day and ramp up to 330mmscf per day by the end of 2026.
The NGC project is Angola’s first non-associated gas development. Gas is produced from the shallow-water offshore Quiluma field, treated at an onshore processing facility and delivered to the Angola LNG plant for export. Azule Energy operates the NGC with a 37.4% stake, alongside Cabinda Gulf Oil Company (31%), Sonangol E&P (19.8%), TotalEnergies (11.8%) and ANPG as the National Concessionaire.
Gordon Birrell, BP’s executive vice president for production & operations and Azule board member, said: “The safe delivery of the NGC project is another example of BP’s strategic progress and demonstrates what strong partnerships and collaboration can deliver. This project marks an important step for Angola’s energy system and strengthens the country’s energy mix as it looks to enhance its position as a global player in the natural gas market.”
In November 2025, the partners inaugurated the project’s gas treatment plant at a ceremony in Soyo, northern Angola. The NGC start-up is the latest in a series of upstream successes for Azule Energy.
In July 2025, production began from the Agogo field at the Agogo Integrated West Hub (Agogo IWH) project in block 15/06, offshore Angola. It also announced the start-up of the Ndungu development in February 2026.
Since the beginning of 2025, Azule Energy has announced four hydrocarbon discoveries: the Algaita-01 well and Gajajeira-01 gas find in Angola, and the Volans-1X and Capricornus-1X discoveries in Namibia’s Orange Basin.
BP announced 12 discoveries in 2025 across several basins. It also started up seven major upstream projects in the same period – five ahead of schedule – in Trinidad and Tobago (2), the UK North Sea, Egypt, Mauritania and Senegal, and the Gulf of America (2), contributing to its plan to deliver 10 major project start-ups globally by the end of 2027.
Angola’s National Agency for Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels (ANPG) and New Gas Consortium (NGC), a partnership established to develop non-associated gas in offshore Angola, made the Final Investment Decision (FID) to develop the Quiluma and Maboqueiro fields in July 2022.
