The Republic of Congo has appointed Franc Mouzabakani Kiesse as Director General of the Upstream Petroleum Sector, placing a veteran petroleum executive in charge of overseeing the country’s exploration and production activities as it pursues higher crude output and expanded upstream investment.
Appointed by presidential decree on June 18 and officially installed July 9, Mouzabakani will work alongside Minister of Hydrocarbons Stev Simplice Onanga to advance Congo’s strategy of increasing oil production while strengthening oversight of the country’s upstream industry.
The government has set a target of reaching 500,000 bpd over the coming years through a combination of offshore developments, brownfield redevelopment, legislative reforms and increased investment in natural gas infrastructure.
According to the Ministry of Hydrocarbons, Mouzabakani’s priorities include strengthening oversight of exploration and production activities, improving project monitoring, enhancing audits of petroleum development costs submitted by operators and maximizing state revenues from upstream projects. He also plans to expand local content initiatives and support the continued development of state-owned Société Nationale des Pétroles du Congo (SNPC).
Mouzabakani brings more than three decades of experience across engineering, project development, government relations and commercial strategy. During his career with TotalEnergies, he held a series of technical and leadership positions before returning to Congo to oversee process studies, deepwater development projects, joint ventures and government relations. He has also held senior positions with Perenco Congo and AMMAT Global Resources.
His appointment comes as upstream activity continues to accelerate across the country. TotalEnergies is advancing a $500 million-$600 million drilling campaign following the Moho G discovery, while development continues under the $23-billion Bango Kayo, Holmoni and Cayo agreement. Independent operators, including Perenco, Trident Energy and PetroNor, are also expanding production through new infrastructure and brownfield optimization projects.
The African Energy Chamber welcomed the appointment, saying Mouzabakani’s combination of technical, commercial and regulatory experience is expected to support implementation of Congo’s upstream strategy and strengthen collaboration between government and industry as the country works to attract additional investment.