Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas, the oil and gas exploration company focused on the offshore Atlantic Margins, has announced that, further to the Company’s announcements on December 4, 2025 and May 20, 2026, completion of its farm down of a 37.5% working interest in Block 1 CBK offshore South Africa and transfer of Operatorship of the Block to Navitas Petroleum (acting through a subsidiary) following receipt of the requisite regulatory approvals (Section 11) from the government of South Africa and the TSX Venture Exchange.
Completion of the Farm Down, initially announced in May 2026, represents another key milestone in Eco’s strategic framework agreement with Navitas and follows an extensive review of the Block’s existing geological data by both Eco and Navitas.
Block 1 CBK, which spans 19,929 km² offshore South Africa, directly abutting the Namibian border, has both oil and gas potential and benefits from three legacy exploration wells which confirmed a gas discovery with tested flow rates of 32.4 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscfd) as well as additional gas shows and oil indications. Certain prospectivity on the acreage is considered geologically analogous to both the Kudu gas field to the north and sits immediately southeast of recent light oil discoveries made by Galp Energia (Mopane), TotalEnergies (Venus), and Rhino Resources (Capricornus). The most recent, closest light-oil discovery to the Block is Shell’s Merlin-1X exploration well (June-2026), which lies 70km away.
Following Completion, Eco now holds a 37.5% WI in Block 1 CBK (up to 47.5% assuming the exercise of the option with OrangeBasin Energies referenced below) with Navitas assuming Operatorship of the Block with a 37.5% WI (up to 47.5% assuming the exercise of the Eco-OrangeBasin Energies option).
As part of the Farm Down, Eco has now also received a US$4.0 million cash payment from Navitas. Additionally, Eco will be carried by Navitas for the work programme, the value of the carry being capped at US$7.5 million net to Eco. The amounts carried by Navitas will be repaid via Eco's share of proceeds from future production on the Block.
As detailed in the Company's announcement on December 4, 2025, on December 3, 2025, Eco, through its subsidiary Azinam South Africa, signed an exclusive option agreement with its local partner OrangeBasin Energies, to acquire a further 20% participating interest in Block 1 CBK for a cash and shares consideration. Navitas has the right to acquire 50% of this option (representing a 10% WI), which is exercisable at Eco's and Navitas' mutual consent and discretion at any point throughout the term of the initial exploration period expiring in February 2028.
The resulting ownership structure is therefore expected to be as follows:
|
Scenario |
Eco |
Navitas |
OrangeBasin Energies |
|
Previous pre-completion position |
75.0% |
0.0% |
25.0% |
|
Following Completion of the Farm Down |
37.5% |
37.5% |
25.0% |
|
If the Option Agreement is exercised in full and Navitas acquires 50% of the additional interest |
47.5% |
47.5% |
5.0% |
Gil Holzman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Eco Atlantic, commented:
'Completion of the Block 1 CBK farm down marks another important milestone in our Strategic Framework with Navitas, extending our partnership into South Africa and demonstrating the value of our growing collaboration across multiple jurisdictions.
'Navitas is a highly experienced global operator and producer with an exceptional track record of developing offshore resources. Their expertise, tied with South Africa’s growing need to bring new domestic gas supplies online to meet in-country demand, provides strong foundations to progress the development of Block 1 CBK’s sizeable resources.
'Since announcing the Farm Down, our technical teams have worked closely together, and we look forward to a smooth operational transition to Navitas and continued collaboration with our partners and in-country stakeholders to advance Block 1 CBK and unlock further value from the licence.
'We are grateful to the Government of South Africa, and particularly the Petroleum Agency of South Africa for the smooth and efficient regulatory process, as well as to Navitas, our advisers and all those involved in reaching this milestone.
“More broadly, we continue to make good progress towards completing the other strategic transactions announced earlier this year, including the acquisition of JHI, the farm down of our Namibian licences to BP, and negotiations for a new PSA covering our Orinduik acreage in Guyana. Each is progressing well and remains on track for finalisation as guided during 2026, further strengthening and advancing Eco’s portfolio across the Atlantic Margin.'
Source: Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas
