Sahara Group targets 350,000 bpd in five years with rig acquisitions

Sahara Group has announced a target of producing 350,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) within the next five years, as part of its plan to expand its upstream capacity.

Leste Aihevba, chief technical officer of Asharami Energy, the upstream subsidiary of Sahara Group, spoke during a strategic meeting with investors and stakeholders on the sidelines of the recently concluded Africa Energy Week in Cape Town, South Africa.

He said the company’s growth would be driven by a significant upgrade of its exploration and production service offerings, enhanced execution capacity, and the acquisition of seven new rigs for accelerated and more efficient production.

“The journey towards a secure and sustainable energy future for Africa cannot be travelled in silos,” Aihevba was quoted as saying in a statement on Sunday.

“Every refinery upgrade, every gas commercialisation project, every power reform and community wealth accretion initiative must be part of a broader continental blueprint.”

The company official said Sahara’s infrastructure drive is already transforming its operations and improving capacity and competitiveness in Africa’s energy space.

“We have expanded our reserves development and production capacity with the acquisition of seven rigs for both drilling and workover,” he said.

“This bold and strategic drive also complements our efforts geared towards accelerating the pace from exploration to production, enhancing local content participation, and ensuring Africa efficiently develops the reserves that will power the continent’s growth and energy future.”

‘TWO RIGS ALREADY IN NIGERIA’

The rig acquisition, Aihebva noted, is central to Sahara’s target of producing 350,000 bpd of oil and 1 billion standard cubic feet per day (MMscf/d) of gas in Nigeria over the next five years.

“Two of the seven new rigs are already in the country, with another two expected to arrive before year-end,” the technical officer said.

“Our upstream operations are anchored on a robust shared prosperity approach which recognises our host communities and government as partners, collaborating towards becoming locally competent and globally competitive in bringing energy to life responsibly.”

Aihevba said the investments are already delivering results, noting that one of the rigs — a 2,000-horsepower land rig named L-Buba — has commenced operations by spudding a gas development well in one of Sahara’s fields.

He said a second rig is currently being mobilised to spud an oil development well, with others expected to follow soon.

The official added that the rigs will be managed by Arahas Global Oilfield Services, a Sahara Group company.