Maersk Drilling eyes African prizes
An uptick in west African activity holds promise for hard-pressed drillers
West Africa is one of the world's few hotspots for offshore drillers and could yet be poised to throw up more opportunities, as oil companies firm up their E&P plans in the region's new and expanding oil provinces. That is welcome news for Angela Durkin, chief operating officer at Maersk Drilling, whose business is still shaking off the effects of the collapse in activity during the post-2014 industry downturn-while preparing to be spun off from its parent A P Moller Maersk in 2019. "Our main focus in Africa right now is Ghana, where we have three of our drillships positioned. It's a very active market for us right now," Durkin told Petroleum Economist at November's Africa Oil Week confe
Also in this section
14 April 2026
The GECF has warned it may revise its projections for demand this year downwards in light of conflict in the Middle East, although it maintains its forecasts for 2027 and onwards
13 April 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis highlights sharp shift from crude oversupply to market deficit, with Iraq and Kuwait badly affected and key producers Saudi Arabia and the UAE also seeing output sharply lower
13 April 2026
Turkmenistan is moving ahead with a modest expansion of the giant Galkynysh field to sustain gas deliveries abroad, but persistent delays to other key pipeline projects and geopolitical risks continue to constrain its export ambitions
13 April 2026
Expensive electricity has forced out swathes of energy-intensive industry and now threatens the country’s ability to attract future investment in datacentres and the digital economy
