ExxonMobil Pursues Ghana’s Deepwater Exploration Acreage

Analysis of Ghana’s upstream oil and gas industry shows that the country currently has 21 licensed blocks, of which 14 are in the ultra-deepwater terrain, five are in shallow water, and two in deepwater, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Tullow Oil Plc, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, Kosmos Energy Ltd, and CEF (SOC) Ltd represent the companies with the largest licensing presence in Ghana, each participating in four blocks. Ghana National Petroleum Corporation has participation in all licensed blocks. ExxonMobil Corporation is the latest entrant into Ghana’s upstream sector, with interest in the Deepwater Cape Three Points block.

Eight deepwater and ultra-deepwater discoveries were made in Ghana over the past five years, according to GlobalData. Water depths for the newly discovered fields varied from 4,920 to 7,411 feet. Hess Corporation was responsible for six discoveries, Ophir Energy Plc and Lukoil Oil Company each had one. Hess Corporation is currently exploring options to divest out of its interests in Ghana.

With the TEN project coming online in 2016 and the OCTP asset commencing in 2017, Ghana currently produces three deepwater fields. One new deepwater oil project, Mahogany-Teak-Akasa (MTA), is expected to come online in 2018 under the Kosmos Enery Ltd operatorship. Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, Tullow Oil Plc, Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, and CEF (SOC) Ltd are Kosmos’s partners in the project.