An oil pumpjack operating in Angola. Though new oil discoveries create optimism, they can’t reverse nearly two decades of declining oil output. (Shutterstock/Andre Silva Pinto)

Why Chevron’s Big Angola Discovery Masks a Bigger Oil Problem

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Chevron’s new offshore discovery has raised hopes in Luanda, but it can’t reverse two decades of declining output. 

This month, Chevron announced an oil discovery in Angola’s offshore Block 0, a finding the international press regardedas major for a nation struggling to reverse its declining oil production. For Luanda, the discovery represents hope that new oil finds can help extend the life of one of the country’s most important sectors. However, Angola still has a much bigger problem. After reaching its peak production level in 2008, the country has experienced nearly two decades of falling oil output as its major fields have matured. Discoveries may help to slow this decline, but they do not alter the long-term problem facing Angola’s oil-dependent economy.

Angola was once one of Africa’s leading oil producers. President Jose Eduardo dos Santos used oil income........

© The National Interest