JDZ: NAPE urges fresh drive into joint development zone
**** As experts highlight vast untapped hydrocarbon potential
The Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) has renewed calls for deeper investment in frontier exploration, with industry leaders spotlighting the Nigeria–São Tomé and Príncipe Joint Development Zone (JDZ) as a major untapped hydrocarbon frontier capable of boosting regional energy reserves.
Speaking at NAPE’s April Monthly Technical/Business Meeting in Lagos, NAPE President Cecilia Olajumoke Ajayi said the country must intensify efforts to discover new reserves as existing oil and gas assets mature.
Ajayi, in her opening address, said the focus on frontier exploration aligns with the association’s broader commitment to sustaining Nigeria’s petroleum future.
“As explorers, we must continue to explore because oil and gas will continue to play an important role. As we deplete existing reserves, we must open up new frontier areas and bring in more discoveries,” she said.
She commended members, students, past presidents and sponsors for supporting NAPE’s technical engagements, describing the monthly meetings as crucial for shaping conversations around reserve growth, basin development and energy security.
Ajayi said NAPE’s technical sessions since the beginning of the year had consistently focused on exploration, reserve replacement and strategies for unlocking stranded resources.
She expressed optimism that the meeting’s theme, Joint Development Zone: Hydrocarbon Prospectivity and Exploration Opportunities, would provide fresh insights into the basin’s geological potential and commercial prospects.
The NAPE president also led members in celebrating veteran geoscientist and one of the association’s founding fathers, Bayo Akinnpelu, who recently turned 80.
Ajayi described him as a distinguished industry figure whose contributions helped shape petroleum exploration in Nigeria and across Africa.
Meanwhile, before her opening address, NAPE’s President-elect, Dr. Anthony Ofoma, welcomed and recognised, the NAPE President and other members of NAPE Executive present at the meeting. He also recognised NAPE past leaders. “whose continued guidance strengthens this association. Your presence reflects our shared commitment to advancing the geoscience profession and supporting sustainable energy development” Ofoma said.
He said that the theme of the meeting, “Joint Development Zone: Hydrocarbon Prospectivity: Exploration and Opportunities” is both timely and strategic. “At a time when the global energy industry is evolving rapidly, conversations around frontier exploration, regional collaboration, and unlocking new hydrocarbon potential have become more important than ever” he said.
According to him, NAPE is particularly honoured to have the keynote speaker, Aleksandra Oshodi, whose insights on the Joint Development Zone (JDZ)! promise to enrich the understanding of the opportunities of NAPE members and the industry in general.
“I also warmly acknowledge the chairman of today’s panel session, Kazeem Koleoso, for guiding what promises to be a robust discussion. My appreciation also goes to our distinguished panelists: Mohammed Lawal Ibrahim and Clement Onyekwelu, as they share their expertise” he said.
He encouraged everyone to engage actively, asking thoughtful questions, and make the most of this meeting. “Thank you for joining us, and I wish us all a productive and insightful session” he said.
Following NAPE’s President opening address the meeting’s keynote presentation was delivered by Aleksandra Oshodi, Senior Geoscience Manager at Juvicle Energy Resources Limited, who laid out a compelling case for renewed exploration in the JDZ.
Oshodi said the JDZ, established under a bilateral treaty between Nigeria and São Tomé and Príncipe, covers more than 35,000 square kilometres and remains significantly underexplored despite its proven hydrocarbon system.
Under the treaty arrangement, Nigeria controls 60 per cent of the resources while São Tomé and Príncipe holds 40 per cent.
He explained that the Joint Development Authority was created to manage exploration and production activities in the zone, including issuance of permits and licences.
Tracing the basin’s exploration history, Oshodi said the JDZ witnessed strong industry interest between 2003 and 2005, when major international oil companies including Chevron, ExxonMobil and TotalEnergies acquired acreage and carried out seismic studies.
He noted that the zone recorded a major breakthrough in 2006 with the Obo-1 discovery by Chevron, confirming commercial hydrocarbon presence and revealing more than 270 million barrels of oil equivalent in discovered resources.
However, he said progress slowed after 2013 due to the commercial challenges of shallow gas-prone targets and the inability of earlier discoveries to meet development economics.
“Operations stalled, but that does not mean the basin failed geologically. What it means is that the earlier play concepts were not fully commercial under prevailing conditions,” Oshodi said.
According to him, only eight wells have been drilled across the vast acreage, leaving the basin grossly underexplored relative to its scale and potential.
He said newly reprocessed pre-stack depth migration 3D seismic data had identified promising deeper targets between 3,000 and 4,500 metres, beyond the shallow zones previously tested.
“These deeper fairways suggest a significant opportunity for a disciplined re-entry into the basin. The system is proven, and modern data is helping us reduce uncertainty,” she said.
Oshodi added that the JDZ shares geological similarities with successful transform margin plays such as the Jubilee oil discovery and TEN fields offshore Ghana, both of which have yielded substantial commercial volumes.
On the basin’s geological framework, she said available studies indicate the presence of high-quality source rocks deposited during key oceanic anoxic events from the Aptian to Turonian periods.
He cited regional studies and deep-sea drilling evidence from neighbouring basins, including the Kwanza and Sierra Leone basins, as further support for the presence of effective petroleum systems in the JDZ.
In his contribution at the panel session, Clement Onyekwelu said the JDZ offers a timely opportunity for Nigeria and regional investors to return to frontier exploration and boost reserve replacement.
Onyekwelu, said global capital was increasingly flowing to emerging hydrocarbon provinces such as Suriname, Guyana and Namibia, while significant opportunities still exist within Nigeria’s offshore frontier basins.
“There is no better time than now to return to frontier exploration,” he said. “Other regions are attracting huge value because they are willing to take bold steps into deeper plays. We also have opportunities here that can deliver significant commercial value.”
He stressed that the JDZ presents an opportunity to move beyond previously tested prospects and focus on deeper water stratigraphic plays that could prove more competitive and commercially viable.
According to him, collaboration among indigenous operators, technical experts and financiers will be critical to reviving activity in the basin and turning it into a profitable petroleum province.
“What we need now is a coordinated effort by homegrown companies that understand the terrain and are willing to invest,” he said. “Nigerians can lead this process. We have capable professionals and investors who can drive the first wave of new exploration.”
Onyekwelu challenged NAPE to move beyond technical advocacy and assume a stronger leadership role in promoting opportunities within the JDZ to both local and international investors.
He said the association was well positioned to champion the basin’s prospects, mobilise stakeholder support and help create the momentum needed to attract fresh capital.
“NAPE can take the lead in championing these opportunities within our environment and driving investment,” he said.
He also called for stronger partnerships among local firms, saying future joint ventures involving indigenous operators could help unlock deeper offshore opportunities while supporting the development of producing assets that are gradually depleting.
According to him, fresh discoveries in the JDZ and similar frontier basins are critical for Nigeria and the wider region to replace reserves, improve energy security and enhance long-term shareholder value.
Onyekwelu commended NAPE for creating a platform for robust technical discussions and praised the session’s presentation for highlighting both the geological promise and commercial attractiveness of the JDZ.
He expressed optimism that with the right technical focus, financing and regional cooperation, the basin could become a major contributor to future oil and gas growth in West Africa.
The Acting Chairman of the Joint Development Authority (JDA) Board, Mohammed Lawal Ibrahim, has described the Joint Development Zone (JDZ) as a unique treaty-based institution designed to foster cross-border cooperation and unlock hydrocarbon opportunities for both Nigeria and São Tomé and Príncipe.
Speaking also during the panel session at the NAPE Monthly Technical/Business Meeting in Lagos, Ibrahim said the JDA remains a critical framework for managing and advancing oil and gas prospects in the Gulf of Guinea.
He began by paying glowing tribute to a former Executive Director of the JDA, whom he credited with playing a pivotal role in strengthening the organisation’s foundation.
“Before I start, I would just like to acknowledge the presence of one of our former executive directors. He was very, very fundamental. Thank you for moving JDA forward. It’s really an honour to have him here,” Ibrahim said.
The NAPE meeting, themed “Joint Development Zone: Hydrocarbon Prospectivity and Exploration Opportunities,” brought together geoscientists, investors, industry experts and policy stakeholders to examine the untapped petroleum potential within the JDZ.
Explaining the JDA’s structure, Ibrahim said the agency operates under a special treaty arrangement between Nigeria and São Tomé and Príncipe, making it distinct from conventional national oil institutions.
According to him, the JDA’s governance system is carefully designed to ensure balance, transparency and equal participation between the two countries.
“The JDA is a peculiar organisation. It’s a collegiate organisation made up of executive directors, two from Nigeria and two from São Tomé and Príncipe,” he said.
He noted that this governance framework reflects the spirit of partnership and mutual benefit that underpins the JDZ arrangement.
Ibrahim, who oversees finance and administration, said the current management team is committed to sustaining the authority’s mandate despite industry and market challenges.
The JDZ, located in the Gulf of Guinea, was established to jointly manage petroleum resources in the maritime boundary shared by Nigeria and São Tomé and Principe. Although exploration activities in the zone slowed in recent years, stakeholders have continued to express optimism over its long-term potential.
The Chairman of the panel session at the NAPE April Technical/Business Meeting, Kazeem Koleoso, FNAPE, in summary of the presentation said the Nigeria–São Tomé and Príncipe Joint Development Zone (JDZ) still offers significant hydrocarbon opportunities despite disappointing past drilling results.
Koleoso said recent geological studies and petroleum system modelling have provided stronger insight into the basin’s prospectivity, supported by both historical drilling data and newly acquired 3D pre-stack depth migration (PSDM) seismic data.
He noted that although exploration campaigns between 2006 and 2013 by major international oil companies yielded sub-commercial results, fresh analysis has improved understanding of the basin’s unique characteristics, including the impact of the Cameroon Volcanic Line and regional heat flow.
According to him, the JDZ has proven source rocks, viable reservoir systems and active hydrocarbon generation, with expulsion from source rocks dating back to the Eocene and continuing to the present.
Koleoso said modelling identified “golden zones” for hydrocarbon accumulation within optimal thermal windows, while analogues from offshore Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Angola and Namibia support the basin’s potential.
He, however, cautioned that trap risks remain high due to the predominance of stratigraphic plays, but stressed that flexible fiscal terms and improved subsurface data could attract fresh investor interest.
Industry participants at the meeting said the renewed focus on the JDZ could help unlock fresh investment, deepen regional cooperation and support long-term reserve replacement in Nigeria’s upstream sector.
The session ended with a strong consensus among geoscientists and operators that the JDZ remains one of West Africa’s most promising frontier basins, provided investment is matched with modern data, disciplined drilling and supportive policy frameworks.
