Affentra, which is listed in the United Kingdom-which transmits African energy-states the activation of mature oil fields with a focus on efficiency. With the current assets in Angola, the company seeks to obtain additional opportunities throughout West Africa. CFO Anastasia Deulina has worked as the group’s financial president since its establishment in 2021.
Global Finance: What are the main challenges you faced as a financial manager?
Anastasia Daulina: The biggest challenge was the fact that we are emerging. Three of us – MySelf, Paul MCDADE (CEO), and Ian Cloc (COO) – came from a much larger company, Tullow Oil. We left Tullow and we named Affment in 2021. This was the most challenging period, because there was no certainty that we could collect funding or successfully obtain assets.
On a personal level, my trip was as a unique financial manager. I am not the traditional financial manager: I did not go out through the ranks of accounting or companies like PWC or Deloitte. My background is more technical, with a mixture of economics, engineering and business. I mean, entering the role of the financial manager means adopting responsibilities that I have not trained specifically throughout my career.
Taking a full financial transformer procedure means that I was suddenly responsible for collecting donations, audits and other main jobs that do not traditionally fall under the role of business development. I would like to say that the challenge was two parts: First, they meet as one team to build something new and lead others through uncertainty; Second, moving personally to a role that led me to be far from my previous experience.
GF: What are the specific financial manager’s skills required by the oil and gas industry?
Deolina: The oil and gas sector is somewhat unique because it does not care primarily to sell the product in the traditional sense, and we do not control its prices. What we can do, and what some companies run better than others, is to reduce the price risks associated with the sale of oil. In Affment, we were fixed and consistent in our hedge approach. As a relatively small company, it is especially important for us to manage risk wisely; We want to ensure financial stability, pay our bills on time, and eventually sleep well at night. Capital discipline is crucial, which is why we apply our hedge strategy with this rigor.
GF: There is a general view that the global risks have increased significantly. Where do you see the main risks arising over the next two years?
Deolina: If you really know, I can do something else for a living. What I can say is this: I was in the oil and gas industry for 28 years, and there was no time that you could not predict the future with certainty.
When I was writing my thesis again in the period 1998-1999, the entire oil industry looked on the brink of collapse. Oil prices fell to $ 10 per barrel. Everyone was merged. The companies were buying each other, and Houston became the axis and the industry was shrinking. I felt like the end of the world.
Today, the challenges are different. Oil is no longer $ 11 a barrel, but the fluctuation remains. This industry has always been the rotating ship, with different dynamics, different players and different geopolitical forces leading change. Currently, the global scene is strongly affected by decisions that come out of the United States. With the Trump administration, some decisions that surprised the market – although they may not be completely – continue with the development of trade negotiations and political transformations.
GF: What makes Africa a logical focus at this time?
Deolina: The truth is, no one knows exactly what will happen. But what we know is that the world will still need oil and gas, and this will not change any time soon. Africa, in particular, needs to make a powerful and sustainable oil and gas to support its residents and economic development.
If you live in London, Houston, New York, your view is completely different from someone on the ground in Brazzaville, NIGERIA or Uganda. Travel to those places, and you will see the world with a completely different lens.
Angola is a proud country with deep oil and gas traditions. This industry will continue, regardless of what happens between Russia and Ukraine, or the United States and Canada. For us at Affmentra, our mission exceeds the value of shareholders or support our employees. We are very focused on the service of our primary stakeholders: Angola’s people and government. This is where our deeds are rooted.
