17.6m Barrels, Zero Downtime: How Petralon Energy Revived A 1970s Chevron Field In 5 Years – CCO

‘Small barges, big returns;’ Secrets Uduak Equere shared to a packed room of investors, CEOs and policymakers at AOW 2026 on how Petralon changed the playbook for reviving mature assets, rewriting the rule book for Africa’s indigenous oil players

Accra, Ghana — NOP NIGERIA

Indigenous Nigerian operator Petralon Energy is proving that African companies can acquire, develop and operate world-class oil assets at speed, as it brought its second consecutive well at Dawes Island onstream just six months after First Oil.

The announcement came as the company’s Chief Commercial Officer, Uduak Equere, who also serves as Executive Director of Petralon 54, addressed a high-level panel at Africa Oil Week, AOW 2026, in Accra themed “The Future of the African Operator: Building the IOCs of Tomorrow.”

On the panel moderated by the MD and co-founder of Argentil Capital Partners, Equere was joined by MD and CEO of West African Exploration and Production Company, Olajumoke Cecelia Ajayi; CFO of Aradel Holdings, Adegbola Adesina; GCEO of Ashgrove Group, Mahmud Tukur; and MD of BAP Energy Nigeria.

Production on the DI-3 well commenced on March 14, 2026, and has since delivered an average additional 2,800 barrels of oil per day, bopd. That pushes the Dawes Island field’s combined capacity to approximately 4,800 bopd.

DI-3 builds directly on DI-2, which came online on October 18, 2025. Together, the two wells represent a sustained, back-to-back drilling programme on a field that was non-producing when Petralon acquired it in 2021.

To date, Petralon 54 has exported over 350,000 barrels of oil from Dawes Island via the Bonny Oil and Gas Terminal, located about 30km from the field. The DI-3 well was delivered with zero lost-time incidents, in line with the company’s commitment to world-class health, safety and environment standards.

Located 15km from Port Harcourt in the Eastern Niger Delta, Dawes Island covers roughly 46 km² and holds an estimated 17.6 million barrels of recoverable oil. Petralon 54 holds a 100% working interest in the asset.

Equere told the AOW panel how Petralon changed the playbook for reviving mature assets. “The asset we bought into was first drilled in the 70s by Chevron, and when we took over the asset we went back to the drawing board, planning the asset recycle, put the required skill in place.”

Instead of waiting for large barges and high volumes before evacuating crude, he said, Petralon opted for smaller, faster barges. “With this we reduce risk, cut cost and make return on investment. We also put proper gas monetisation in place.”

Speaking on what the IOCs of tomorrow should look like, Equere said: “I would love the IOCs of tomorrow to have a footprint, cost discipline, and a drive for local content development.”

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Reflecting on the milestone, Equere said: “Our success at Dawes Island was built on the conviction that Nigerians could acquire, develop, and operate world-class energy assets. That conviction once required courage, today, it stands on proof. The easy thing after DI-2 would have been to pause, but the determination and resilience of every single member of the Petralon team drove us forward, and DI-3 is the result of that effort.”

He credited the progress to collaboration with host communities, regulators and partners. “Progress like this is only possible through the strong collaboration we have built. This is only the beginning of what Dawes Island can deliver,” he added, as Petralon pushes ahead with its phased development to grow production and strengthen its position as a leading indigenous operator.

Reported by NOP NIGERIA from Africa Oil Week 2026, Accra