Ghana’s national oil company (NOC), the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), has urged regional NOCs in West Africa to partner in accelerating exploration across the country’s land area.
The call was made by Canny Job, GNPC’s Director of Exploration and Production, at the Leveraging Frontier Discovery for West Africa Growth panel at MSGBC Oil and Gas Power 2025 in Dakar on December 9.
“We are looking for partners who can help reduce risks on land and strengthen regional collaboration with NOCs, including Petrocen,” Jobe said, adding: “Onshore is where we are behind and there is not a lot of data there.”
Petrosen, Senegal’s NOC, noted that less than 10% of the MSGBC basin has been explored and highlighted efforts to expand activities into the deep ocean, where additional 3D seismic data is needed.
“We see many similarities in our basin with other world-class basins around the world, which gives us great confidence,” said Abu Mbenge, Director of Exploration Advancement at Petrosen E&P.
Mauritania’s NOC, Société Mauritanienne des Hydrocarbons (SMH), highlighted the country’s achievements with 11 oil and gas discoveries from more than 80 onshore and offshore wells. NOC highlighted the scale of recent data collection, with over 100,000 km² of 3D seismic data currently available.
“If you look offshore of Mauritania, you can see that all oil systems are working well,” said Hamadi El-Hajj, exploration director at SMH. “The MSGBC Basin is one of the largest basins in the world and has tremendous potential for oil and gas.”
TGS, the energy data and intelligence company with the world’s largest multi-client library of geophysical and geological data, has announced that it is preparing a new vessel for deployment to West Africa. The company is also introducing infrequent data sources to enhance data richness and resolution.
Robert Holden, vice president of TGS Africa, Mediterranean and Middle East, added: “Seismic protection is our business and we are built on a multi-client model. We are also strengthening our satellite, storage and cloud technologies.”
Elsewhere in the MSGBC region, Guinea-Bissau is also seeing new ocean exploration activity with the entry of major international companies including Apus Energy. The company holds the shallow water Sinapa and Esperanza licenses, with wells to be drilled in 2024 and construction of the next well planned for 2027.
“We have embarked on a journey to deliver a well offshore Guinea-Bissau,” said Michael Mosesian, Drilling Manager at Apas Energy. “Although we have not reached the same production as the Sangomar field, we have encountered some oil deals with the Sinapa and Esperanza licenses.”
There has been a significant increase in offshore investment in the MSGBC basin, anchored by Senegal’s Sangomar oil field and the Greater Tortue Amayim (GTA) LNG development along the Senegal-Mauritania maritime border. As operator of the GTA project, BP confirmed that it is working with both governments to implement Phase 2, with a target start date of 2027.
“As for future stages, BP, its partners and the governments of Senegal and Mauritania are working together to open the next stage in the best possible way,” said Mariama Ndao, BP’s Deputy Country Manager for Senegal. “We are focused on our mission to deliver the next chapter of the GTA project.”
