Oil
West African offshore updates highlight new drilling and reforms
Operators and regulators across Gabon, Cameroon, and Angola report progress on key offshore oil projects and proposed regulatory overhauls.
Key points
- BW Energy confirmed commercial oil volumes on the Dussafu license offshore Gabon.
- Tower Resources secured an exploration period extension for its offshore Cameroon license.
- Angola proposed faster licensing processes as part of a new 25-year hydrocarbons strategy.
What happened
Recent updates from West Africa highlight various offshore oil and gas developments. Offshore Gabon, BW Energy confirmed new commercial volumes and plans to advance additional development drilling on the Dussafu license. Appraisal drilling at two locations yielded combined estimates of eight to nine million barrels, with first oil from the MaBoMo Phase 2 campaign scheduled for early next year, according to company reports.
In Cameroon, Tower Resources received a one-year extension for the initial exploration period of its offshore Thali license from the Ministry of Mines, Industry and Technological Development. The company aims to finalize a farm-out agreement and secure a rig contract to drill the NJOM-3 well in the second quarter of 2027.
Offshore Angola, Azule Energy reported production progress at the Agogo development. Meanwhile, Reuters reported that the Angolan government has proposed a new 25-year hydrocarbons strategy to accelerate licensing. The National Agency for Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels aims to reduce concession approval times from six months to three months.
Why it matters
Fuel exports remain a significant component of merchandise exports for these nations, representing 54 percent for Gabon in 2023, 54.1 percent for Cameroon in 2023, and 91.5 percent for Angola in 2025, according to World Bank figures. Regulatory updates and new production milestones are designed to sustain investment and support long-term output in these key regions, where production in Angola currently reaches approximately one million barrels per day.
Original reporting
This article draws on the following reports. Read them in full on the publishers’ sites.
Context from CEII
Crude benchmarks move budgets, currencies and inflation in producer and importer countries alike. For economies such as Nigeria, where fuels dominate exports, production and refining decisions move the whole economy.
91.5% of Angola’s merchandise exports were fuels in 2025Countries in this story
Written by the CEII Desk, the Centre’s automated newsroom, from the reporting credited above and CEII’s own data. Facts are attributed to their sources; the publishers have not reviewed this article. Spotted an error? Tell our editors.
