US firm taking the operator helm at African offshore block with ‘significant’ oil & gas prospectivity

Houston-based energy player Vaalco Energy has dished out millions to get its hands on the majority stake in an offshore block, believed to contain not just oil but also gas prospects off the coast of Côte D’Ivoire, Africa.

Vaalco Energy has farmed into the CI-705 block offshore Côte d’Ivoire, which will enable it to become the operator of the block with a 70% working interest and a 100% paying interest through a commercial carry arrangement, which allows the company to partner with Ivory Coast Exploration Oil & Gas SAS and PETROCI.

Located in the prolific Tano basin, the CI-705 block is approximately 70 kilometers (km) to the west of Vaalco’s CI-40 block, where the Baobab and Kossipo oil fields are situated, and 60 km west of Eni’s recent Calao discovery.

George Maxwell, Vaalco’s Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We are very excited to expand our footprint offshore Côte d’Ivoire. When we announced our entry into country in 2024 as a non-operating partner in the CI-40 block, we noted our excitement to be expanding our West African focus in a well-established and investment-friendly country.

“We believe the CI-705 block is favorably located in a proven petroleum system, near existing infrastructure with access to a strong growing domestic market with attractive upside potential. Under the terms of the farm-in, we will operate the block with a 70% working interest and a 100% paying interest as we carry our partners at commercial terms through the seismic reprocessing and interpretation stages and potentially drilling up to two exploration wells.”

The U.S. player has invested $3 million to acquire its interest in the new block, believing it has “significant prospectivity.” Covering around 2,300 square kilometers, the block CI-705 is lightly explored with three wells drilled so far. The water depth across the block ranges from zero to 2,500 meters.

Maxwell highlighted: “Our initial assessment is that there are both oil and natural gas prospects on the block and we plan to conduct a detailed, integrated geological analysis to assess and mature our understanding of the block’s overall prospectivity. We have demonstrated our ability to acquire, develop and enhance value with the accretive acquisitions we have executed in the past.

“We are also excited about the major projects that we have planned in 2025 and 2026, which are expected to deliver a step-change in organic growth across our portfolio. We are pleased to have yet another opportunity to add value and runway for Vaalco’s future.”

Vaalco is pursuing multiple hydrocarbon projects across Africa. To this end, the firm hired Borr Drilling’s jack-up rig in December 2024 for its 2025/2026 drilling program off the coast of Gabon.

Last month, Vaalco also disclosed a timeline for the departure of a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel, operated by Canadian Natural Resources International (CNRI), from a deepwater oil field in Côte d’Ivoire to embark on a revamp in the UAE.