From Houston to Luanda, First Class Oil

The demand in Luanda, Angola, for oil and gas lawyers is apparently on the up and up. Despite the fact that it is 7,644 miles from Houston to the capital on the southeastern coast of Africa, according to a report by Mary Flood in the Houston Chronicle, oilmen are now being accompanied three times a week on a direct flight.

Angola, a country of 16 million, had been ruled by the Portuguese since the 15th century and was left in shambles when the Europeans went running home after a socialist-inspired coup toppled the government in 1975. The country's long coastline could have been a valuable asset to the freed Angolans, but war ravaged the country. Only lately has the economy begun to grow, spurred by two unsurprising developments.

First, the country has oil reserves. It joined OPEC in 2006 and currently outputs about a 1.5 million barrels a day. That is expected to rise to 2 million. Second, China, as it has in much of Africa, in 2004 invested $2 billion to build the country's infrastructure. As usual, the money came as a line of credit, to be paid with future oil deliveries.

There is plenty of room for development: UNICEF reports that life expectancy in 2005 was just 41 years.

Return your seats to their full and upright position. The flight is run by World Airways and Angola's Sonair. Tickets come by invite only. According to Flood's report, traveling from Texas would otherwise take more than two days. 15-hours nonstop is a nice perk.

In fact, just today Houston-based Marathon Oil Corporation announced a deep water discovery off the coast.

Here's a suggestion for the oil industry workers and lawyers hopping on that flight. Ditch the in-flight magazine and read up on how the oil industry mucked up the Nigerian delta. Private flights don't seem that big a deal, but if anyone remembers the wretched history of Shell oil in Nigeria, bad business doesn't make for good industry, and the Chinese laboring away on roads and bridges may have the upper hand in this one.

(Image from Robert P. Byrne's flickr.)

Comments

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It is not surprising how first world countries are starting to invest in Angola. This country's natural gifts are left undiscovered for many years.