Ghana, Eni to unlock new oil and gas opportunities

Ghana and Italian energy giant Eni are making concerted efforts to rebuild trust and strengthen collaboration following past tensions that threatened investor confidence in the country’s petroleum sector. This comes after Eni’s protracted legal battle with Ghana at the International Court of Arbitration over the Springfield unitization directive—a dispute that industry analysts feared could deter future investments in Ghana’s oil and gas industry.

In a bid to mend relations and explore new business prospects, the CEO of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Edward Bawa, met with Eni Ghana’s Managing Director, Maurizio Pinna, to discuss ways to enhance cooperation and optimize existing assets. This was followed by a high-level meeting between President John Dramani Mahama and Eni’s Global CEO, Claudio Descalzi, during which the energy giant presented new short- and medium-term exploration and development opportunities.

The first engagement between GNPC and Eni Ghana focused on resetting their relationship and aligning their strategic interests for mutual benefit. Discussions covered:

• Strengthening GNPC-Eni partnerships for future exploration
• Maximizing oil and gas production to boost local supply
• Improving asset optimization and efficiency
• Exploring new opportunities across Ghana’s petroleum value chain

The renewed commitment signals a fresh start after the legal dispute over unitization, which had strained relations and cast doubts on Ghana’s investment climate for petroleum projects.

Following the GNPC meeting, President Mahama welcomed Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi to Accra for discussions on the company’s existing operations and future investment plans. Mr. Descalzi highlighted the remarkable achievements of the Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) project, which remains Ghana’s largest private energy investment and a key supplier of domestic gas.

Beyond OCTP, Eni outlined new short- and medium-term exploration and development opportunities, which have the potential to:

• Expand Ghana’s oil and gas reserves
• Increase domestic energy production and security
• Generate government revenue through royalties and taxes
• Create jobs and stimulate growth in petroleum-related businesses

Discussions also covered economic diversification initiatives and potential areas for deeper collaboration between Eni, GNPC, and other industry stakeholders.