Oil & Gas

An exciting development in the oil sector has emerged from Africa, as an oil discovery in Gabon is steadily progressing toward its ambitious production goal of 40,000 barrels per day. According to recent updates from a specialized energy platform based in Washington, Norwegian company BW Energy has successfully activated another well in the Dusavo oil field, located off the coast of Gabon. This marks a significant step forward in the company's operations within the region, further solidifying Gabon’s position as a burgeoning oil-producing nation.

BW Energy's recent activities include the initiation of repairs on three non-producing wells using a drilling rig provided by Borr Drilling, a recognized offshore drilling contractor. Following these repairs, the company plans to conduct further exploratory drilling to locate additional oil and gas reserves before the current drilling contract concludes. BW Energy holds a commanding 73.5% operating stake in the Dusavo license, with Panoro Energy owning the remaining 17.5%, which highlights a collaborative effort in harnessing Gabon’s oil potential.

The oil discovery's significance has grown since May 2024, when BW Energy found substantial reserves on the northern side of the Hibiscus field. The company successfully drilled the BHIBM-7B pilot well, located approximately 1.5 kilometers northwest of the Mabomo production platform. This well demonstrated impressive reservoir quality, which not only raised resource estimates in the Hibisex area but also triggered the drilling of the BHIPM-7B production well using Power Drilling’s Norf rig. With this well now operational, the company is expected to achieve its production targets in the near future.

As of the third quarter of 2024, Panoro Energy reported an average total oil production rate of around 27,465 barrels per day from the Dusavo license, the highest since operations began in 2018. The oil from the Hibiscus/Rocci project is transported through a pipeline to the BW Adollo vessel for processing and storage. Panoro's CEO, John Hamilton, expressed optimism regarding the successful completion of the current drilling campaign, which has seen the addition of eight new production wells. With ongoing efforts to transition all new wells to conventional electric submersible pump systems and restore production in inactive wells, the companies are well on track to reach their target of 40,000 barrels per day by year’s end.