Côte d’Ivoire has resumed oil production at the Baobab offshore field following a 17-month shutdown linked to major maintenance and refurbishment work on its floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit. The restart marks a key step in restoring output from one of the country’s significant offshore energy assets.
The field, located in block CI-40, is operated by Vaalco Energy, which halted production in January 2025 to carry out a full overhaul of the FPSO vessel in Dubai. After approximately nine months of refurbishment, the unit was returned to Côte d’Ivoire in April 2026 and reinstalled at the field before subsea systems were reconnected and production gradually restarted.
So far, four wells have resumed operations, while three additional wells are expected to come back online in the coming weeks as the restart process continues. The company has not yet disclosed current output levels but stated that performance is meeting expectations.
The Baobab field is estimated to contain around 700 million barrels of oil in place, with approximately 200 million barrels considered recoverable. Before the shutdown, net production was averaging roughly 2,900 barrels of oil equivalent per day, highlighting its contribution to offshore output.
Vaalco Energy entered the country in 2024 through the acquisition of a 27.4% stake in block CI-40, expanding its footprint in West Africa’s upstream oil sector. The company’s future plans include a Phase 5 development program scheduled for the second half of 2026, which aims to increase production through new drilling and maintenance work.
The restart strengthens Côte d’Ivoire’s offshore oil industry, where other major developments such as the Baleine field operated by Eni are also driving production growth. Baleine is expected to reach up to 150,000 barrels per day by 2027, further positioning the country as an emerging oil producer in the region.
Overall, the resumption of Baobab production restores a key supply stream and supports ongoing investment momentum in Côte d’Ivoire’s offshore energy sector.
