Windhoek, Feb 9 (IANS): Namibia is gearing to conduct further exploration activities in order to determine the size and recoverable potential of hydrocarbons, said its Minister of Mines and Energy Tom Alweendo.

Alweendo confirmed in a ministry statement on Tuesday that there had been a discovery of light oil in the Orange Basin offshore Namibia by a joint venture at the Graff-1 prospect some 250 km offshore Namibia, Xinhua news agency reported.

"I congratulate Shell, Qatar Energy and National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR) on their recent oil discovery offshore Namibia. It gives us a clear shot at reimaging our economy. When the time comes, we would need to think boldly in structuring a recovery model that is in the best interest of all stakeholders," said Alweendo.

Meanwhile, Namibia's Petroleum Commissioner, Maggy Shino echoed Alweendo's sentiments, saying that the discovery signalled a milestone achievement.

"The Namibian Government is excited to enter this new era in the oil and gas exploration sector. A great milestone has been achieved within the Orange Basin with this significant offshore discovery. We are looking forward to boundless cooperation(s) with the Joint Venture(JV) partners, to optimally progress this discovery," said Shino.