Taiwan’s state-owned oil producer, CPC, says that a first batch of oil extracted from its facility in the African nation of Chad will arrive in Taiwan early in December. Around 950,000 barrels of crude oil are reported to be part of that shipment.
Taiwan struck a deal with Chad in 2006 to explore for new oil fields in the country. In 2011, CPC discovered economically feasible reserves and obtained a license to develop oil fields. The project is the first time Taiwan has committed to develop energy resources in another country. In total, CPC has invested approximately US$1 billion into the project.
The oil field is expected to produce 34 million barrels of oil over its lifetime. Daily production is around 5,800 barrels a day, with Taiwan entitled to around 2,000 daily barrels.
Taiwan relies heavily on imported energy due to a lack of domestic resources. The facility in Chad raises Taiwan’s energy self-sufficiency by 0.4%.