US independent Murphy Oil makes Bubale-1X discovery offshore Côte d’Ivoire

US independent energy company Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE: MUR) on June 22 announced an oil discovery at the Bubale-1X exploration well in Block CI-709 offshore Côte d’Ivoire.

The Bubale-1X well was spudded in late February 2026 by Murphy CI-709 Oil Co Ltd, a subsidiary of Murphy Oil Corporation and operator of Block CI-709, located approximately 40 miles (64 km) off the coast of the West African country. It was drilled to a total depth of 20,548 feet (6,263 metres) in 7,795 feet (2,376 metres) of water.

According to Murphy’s media statement, the well encountered 100 feet (30 metres) of net oil pay across two reservoirs, with a preliminary assessment indicating high-quality light oil. Murphy holds a 90% working interest in the block, with Société Nationale d’Opérations Pétrolières de la Côte d’Ivoire (PETROCI) holding the remaining 10%.

“Early results at Bubale reinforce the prospectivity of our Côte d’Ivoire acreage,” said Eric Hambly, president and chief executive of Murphy Oil Corporation. “We are pleased with the results to date, which underscore the value of a disciplined and consistent exploration approach. Our immediate focus now is advancing evaluation plans to define the discovery’s full potential.”

The Bubale-1X well is the third and final well in Murphy’s current three-well exploration campaign in Côte d’Ivoire, alongside the Civette-1X and Caracal-1X prospects. Following these results, Murphy will move into the next phase of evaluation, with one well planned for the second half of 2026 to test the extent of the discovery, the company said.

According to the African Energy Chamber (AEC), the latest discovery strengthens Côte d’Ivoire’s position as one of West Africa’s fastest-growing exploration destinations and supports the country's goal of becoming one of Africa's top five hydrocarbon producers by 2035. The Chamber said the discovery reflected the effectiveness of the country’s stable fiscal regime and exploration-focused policies.

Côte d’Ivoire is targeting crude oil production of 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) and gas output of one billion cubic feet (bcf), or about 28.3mn cubic metres (mcm), per day by 2035. The country also aims to increase the contribution of the energy and mining sectors to GDP from 7% in 2022 to 14% by 2035 and establish a sovereign wealth fund by 2030 to secure long-term value from its natural resources.

The AEC noted that the discovery reflected growing exploration activity in Côte d’Ivoire’s offshore sector, alongside developments such as the Baleine and Calao projects by Italy’s energy major Eni (BIT:ENI), upcoming drilling campaigns by VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY) and CNR International in Block CI-40, and planned multi-block offshore activities by Brazil’s Petrobras (NYSE:PBR).

“Every new discovery strengthens energy security, creates employment, generates government revenue and reinforces the country’s position as one of Africa’s premier exploration destinations,” said AEC’s executive chairman NJ Ayuk. “The Chamber commends Murphy Oil and PETROCI for their continued confidence in Ivory Coast’s offshore potential, as well as the country’s upstream strategy, which continues to attract international capital and support exploration-led growth.”