General Brice Oligui Nguema, the head of the coup and leader of Gabon’s elite Republican Guard – the unit in charge of the president’s security – has been named as the country’s transition leader.
Nguema is an influential figure in the country and is believed to be related to the deposed president and, which is more important, to the USA.
“The president of the transition insists on the need to maintain calm and serenity in our beautiful country. At the dawn of a new era, we will guarantee the peace, stability and dignity of our beloved Gabon,” military spokesperson said.
Also coup leaders said there would be a curfew from 6pm to 6am.
Interestingly that comparing to the Niger case, there are no westwide condemnation of the coup. No immediate sanctions, no threats. This just confirms suggestions that this is a pro-US coup.
Gabon's Assala Energy says oil production unaffected by coupAssala Energy, which is wholly owned by Carlyle Group (company in US), said its oil production in Gabon has been unaffected by the military coup in the country.
"We can confirm that all our personnel are safe, our operations continue as usual and our production is not affected," a company spokesperson said.
The private equity fund's non-U.S. energy arm first invested in Assala in 2017 when it acquired Shell's ageing operations in Gabon for $628 million.
However, earlier this month, Carlyle agreed to sell Assala to French producer Maurel & Prom, which owns and operates oil and gas assets in Africa, Europe and Latin America, including three licences in Gabon, for $730 million.
