Oil production off the coast of the Benin Republic is expected to commence by the end of January, according to the field operator.
This marks the first oil extraction from the redeveloped field since it was closed in 1998.
A report on Monday said Akrake Petroleum plans to initiate production at the Seme Field in Block 1 offshore Benin by the end of January 2026, following the completion of drilling for production well AK-2H in the reservoir section, which is set to begin early this week, as stated by Rex International Holding Limited, Akrake’s indirect owner based in Singapore.
While the drilling of the production well is underway, the mobile offshore production unit (MOPU) Stella Energy 1 and the floating storage and offloading unit (FSO) Kristina have already been upgraded and positioned for production, the company noted.
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The Seme field was initially discovered in 1969 and produced oil from 1982 until 1998, when operations ceased due to low oil prices and significant water influx in the output.
In August 2025, Akrake Petroleum began drilling the first well in the Seme field as part of a 100-day program to redevelop the oilfield, which had previously yielded a total of 22 million barrels of oil before its closure in 1998.
Originally, the first oil from the redeveloped field was anticipated to flow by the end of 2025, but technical challenges in drilling have delayed the start of production until late January.
International oil companies have shown increased interest in West Africa, while Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer and an OPEC member, aims to significantly boost its oil and gas output in the coming years.
Last year, BP exported the first LNG cargo from Phase 1 of the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project, located further northwest of Benin and spanning Mauritania and Senegal.
In southwest Africa, Angola and Namibia have also attracted exploration interest from major oil companies in recent years.
