Africa – Oil & Gas 360

ReconAfrica begins production testing at Kavango West discovery in Namibia

March 26, 2026

Publisher’s Note: ReconAfrica will present at EneCom Denver – The Energy Investment Conference at the Westin Downtown, August 17-19, 2026. Register to attend. (World Oil) – ReconAfrica has commenced production testing operations at its Kavango West 1X discovery well in Namibia, marking a key step in evaluating the commercial potential of the Kavango basin. Testing operations are underway following receipt of regulatory approvals, with field crews

North Africa power interconnectors emerge as new energy link to Europe

March 23, 2026

(World Oil) – As Europe looks to diversify energy supplies and reduce carbon intensity, electricity interconnections and grid development across North Africa are gaining traction alongside traditional oil and gas trade. For decades, Europe’s energy relationship with North Africa has centered on hydrocarbons, including Algerian pipeline gas, Libyan oil and LNG exports from across the Mediterranean. Increasingly, however, electricity is emerging

Murphy Oil’s offshore West Africa well comes up dry

February 24, 2026

(World Oil) – Murphy Oil has plugged and abandoned its Caracal-1X exploration well offshore Côte d’Ivoire after the well encountered hydrocarbon shows, but failed to establish commercial volumes. The Caracal-1X well in Block CI-102 reached a total depth of 8,534 ft (2,601 m) before being declared a dry hole. The results will inform Murphy’s ongoing assessment of remaining prospectivity across its

The staggering cost of Nigeria missing OPEC+ oil quotas

February 18, 2026

(Oil Price) – Nigeria’s struggles to pump to its OPEC+ quota over the past year have resulted in a loss of $1.31 billion gross revenue for the biggest African oil producer, according to data calculated by Business Insider Africa. The cumulative underproduction for Nigeria between January 2025 and January 2026 is estimated at about 18.12 million barrels. Multiplied by the official

Namibia refuses to recognize TotalEnergies oil acquisition

February 9, 2026

(Oil Price) – The Namibian government will not recognize an asset acquisition deal involving TotalEnergies and Petrobras because they did not follow procedure. In a statement on Sunday, the country’s Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy said, as quoted by Reuters, that TotalEnergies and Petrobras had not notified it of their intentions to acquire a 42.5% each in the PEL104 offshore license and

TotalEnergies pushes deeper into Namibia’s offshore oil boom

February 6, 2026

(Oil Price) – TotalEnergies is expanding its exploration portfolio offshore Namibia with acreage north of a block where a major oil discovery has been made, as the supermajor looks to boost activity in the new global exploration hotspot. TotalEnergies on Friday announced it had signed agreements to buy a 42.5% operated interest in the PEL104 exploration license offshore Namibia from Eight Offshore Investments

Why western oil majors are willing to take the Libya risk again

February 4, 2026

(Oil Price) – With Russia still focused on Ukraine and China on Taiwan, the U.S. and its key Western allies — most notably, Great Britain, France, and Italy — are continuing to secure highly strategic geopolitical gains across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Following Moscow’s loss of its key client state in the region, Syria, the allies have been

Former OPEC president stands trial in London bribery case

January 28, 2026

(World Oil) – Diezani Alison-Madueke accepted cash bribes and “vast quantities” of luxury perks in exchange for handing over lucrative government contracts when she served as Nigerian oil minister, prosecutors said on the first day of a London trial. The 65-year-old former OPEC president is charged with five counts of accepting bribes from people linked to energy groups and one

Africa set to lead global high-impact exploration drilling in 2026

January 28, 2026

(World Oil) – Africa is expected to remain the world’s most active region for high-impact oil and gas exploration drilling in 2026, driven by continued interest in ultra-deepwater and frontier basins, according to new analysis from Rystad Energy. Global high-impact wildcat drilling activity carried strong momentum into 2025, with discovery success rates rising to 38% from 23% in 2024. Total discovered volumes

Chevron-led venture makes oil discovery offshore Nigeria

January 26, 2026

(Oil Price) – A joint venture operated by U.S. supermajor Chevron has made an oil and gas discovery offshore Nigeria as international majors bolster exploration amid the top African producer’s efforts to boost hydrocarbon output and offer more favorable terms for investments. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) on Monday commended Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), operator of the NNPC Ltd/CNL

Shell, partners assess $20-billion investment in Nigeria deepwater field

January 23, 2026

(World Oil) – Shell Plc and its partners in Nigeria are exploring how to develop a big oil field in the West African nation, a step that could one day see them invest $20 billion in the project, the oil major’s Chief Executive Officer said. “We are indeed working on a project, Bonga South West, that could potentially, if we

Four geopolitical flashpoints energy markets cannot ignore in 2026

January 6, 2026

(Oil Price) – As 2026 begins, energy markets are reacting less to supply outages than to how governments are choosing to act. The removal of Venezuela’s president, instability along the Red Sea, and rising uncertainty around Iran have altered assumptions about restraint, escalation, and control. This piece examines four locations where those changes are already influencing energy risk. Venezuela: Decapitation Without

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