Renthia Kaimbi
Namibia could position itself as Africa’s leading hub for the engineering and servicing of floating production, storage and offloading vessels (FPSO), with China identified as a key strategic partner to drive the plan, according to a new industry report.
The 2025 report by the Namibian Association for Offshore Oil and Gas Service Providers, authored by its founder Knowledge Ipinge, sets out a strategy that could create an FPSO-linked industrial sector valued at between N$25 billion and N$40 billion a year by 2035.
The report estimates that the sector could generate more than 10 000 direct and indirect jobs.
The strategy builds on major offshore discoveries in the Orange Basin.
The report notes that TotalEnergies alone expects to spend about N$45 billion on subsea contracts for its Venus project. It says that enforcing a minimum local content target of 18% would channel N$8.1 billion into the Namibian economy from that project alone.
“The collective value from Orange Basin discoveries could reserve N$20 to N$50 billion or more for Namibian companies over the coming decade,” Ipinge said.
“This is the industrial awakening we are fighting to secure.”
First oil from the Orange Basin is expected between 2029 and 2030, with a Final Investment Decision targeted for late 2026.
The report warns that Namibia faces an urgent need to put in place a dedicated FPSO Industrial Development and Implementation Framework between 2026 and 2028.
It says this framework must define legal, safety and operational standards to ensure local companies are ready to participate.
Ipinge said this will require reforms, including ratifying the MARPOL convention on marine pollution and updating outdated laws such as the Merchant Shipping Act of 1951 and the Admiralty Act of 1890.
The report identifies China as central to the strategy. It notes that Chinese shipyards control more than 60% of global FPSO construction and conversion capacity and highlights financing options under the Belt and Road Initiative and the China Build Program.
“We consider China as the ideal strategic partner,” the report states. It proposes cooperation to set up FPSO assembly training centres and module fabrication zones in the Walvis Bay and Lüderitz special economic zones.
The report draws lessons from Guyana’s offshore development, which accelerated through cooperation with China’s CNOOC.
It calls for technology transfer, joint research and skills development to allow Namibian firms to play a role across the full FPSO lifecycle, from design and construction to operations and decommissioning.
The report says Namibia’s workforce skills base stands at about 55% readiness, while the regulatory environment is rated at 45%.
It calls for coordinated action by government, Namcor, Namdock and the private sector to close these gaps ahead of the 2026 FID window.
“The opportunity before us is a generational one,” Ipinge said. “It is the opportunity to harness our offshore potential to build onshore prosperity, capability, and resilience.”
The NAOGSP report is expected to guide high-level engagements with government ministries and the Chinese Embassy in Namibia in early 2026.
