Energy Capital & Power (ECP) is pleased to announce that the 4th African Energy Investment (IAE) Forum will once again be held in Paris on May 11-12, 2026, with a focus on frontier exploration, early-stage project development and upstream investment opportunities. Building on three highly successful editions, IAE continues to serve as the premier platform for global explorers, investors, and African energy leaders to connect, collaborate, and power the next wave of discovery.
Held in Europe’s leading financial and diplomatic hub, IAE 2026 will bring together energy ministers, national oil and power companies, regulators and global investors for two days of strategic dialogue and high-level engagement. This edition focuses on the exploration community and its broader ecosystem, from geologists and service companies to governments and capital providers. With more than 150 oil and gas blocks available for bid in more than 10 African markets in 2025, exploration is making a comeback on the continent, creating opportunities in both mature and remote regions. IAE serves as the best platform to access these opportunities, explore state-of-the-art data rooms, showcase seismic and subsurface innovations, and foster early-stage cooperation between IOCs and NOCs.
Several high-impact licensing rounds are already scheduled for 2026, indicating renewed momentum across Africa’s exploration landscape. Equatorial Guinea has restarted its public licensing process, paving the way for a large licensing round by the end of 2025 or early 2026. Angola is set to repeat multi-year licensing rounds for oil and gas acreage starting in 2026, while Namibia is preparing new offshore licensing opportunities starting in 2025, which are expected to continue into the following year. Uganda also plans to issue new exploration licenses in the 2025/2026 financial year. Additionally, several licensing rounds initiated in 2025 will continue into 2026, providing continued momentum and opportunity for exploration-focused parties.
More than just a development-focused event, IAE 2026 sets the stage for the next era of oil and gas exploration in Africa. With operators and developers expected to invest $43 billion in Africa’s oil and gas sector in 2025, and capital investment expected to reach a 10-year high of $54 billion by 2030, Africa’s role in the global energy landscape will only continue to grow. The IAE is a direct response to this momentum, serving as a launching pad for cross-border investments, strategic partnerships, and early-stage project financing. The forum is designed to engage geologists, upstream strategists, service providers and capital partners looking to unlock the continent’s vast untapped hydrocarbon potential.
“IAE has become the definitive meeting place for African energy stakeholders and global capital markets. We are particularly focused on expanding exploration in 2026, highlighting frontier operations, licensing opportunities and early-stage assets ready for partnership. With preparations underway, we are fully committed to maintaining the growth of this platform and delivering another high-impact edition in 2026,” said Sandra Jeke, Events & Projects Director at ECP.
In previous editions, the forum has welcomed official delegations from more than 20 African countries, hosted exclusive ministerial panels and investor roundtables, and featured hundreds of B2B meetings that laid the foundations for concrete cross-border cooperation. By spotlighting Africa’s exploration resurgence, from undeveloped basins and high-impact drilling campaigns to recent regulatory changes, this forum provides clear value for IOCs assessing global priorities, as well as outlining what the exploration landscape looks like and what investors need to know to engage effectively.
Details regarding the 2026 program, speaker lineup, and sponsorship opportunities will be announced in the coming months.
