The restart marks a rare re-entry into offshore oil production for a country that last pumped crude in 1998, when low prices and technical difficulties forced the field’s closure.
Field operator Akrake Petroleum, whose indirect owner is Singapore-based Rex International Holding, says production will begin once drilling of the AK-2H development well is completed.
According to a Oilprice.com, the company has already positioned and upgraded key production infrastructure, including the mobile offshore production unit Stella Energy 1 and the floating storage and offloading vessel Kristina, both of which are now on site and ready to process and export oil.
The Seme field, located in Block 1 offshore Benin, was originally discovered in 1969 and produced oil between 1982 and 1998.
During that period, it yielded a total of 22 million barrels before operations were halted. The redevelopment programme, launched in August 2025, includes three new wells under a 100-day drilling campaign designed to stabilise output and extend the field’s productive life.
West Africa’s offshore revival
The return of oil production in Benin comes at a time when offshore West Africa is regaining attention from international energy companies.
Technical setbacks pushed first oil at Seme from late 2025 into January 2026, but the project’s completion is being watched closely as a test case for reviving mature offshore fields across the Gulf of Guinea.
The broader regional trend is already visible. BP shipped its first LNG cargo in 2025 from the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project straddling Mauritania and Senegal, while Angola and Namibia have attracted heavy exploration spending from international oil majors.
Against this backdrop, Benin’s modest but symbolically important return to oil production strengthens West Africa’s growing role in global energy supply.
