Executives from TotalEnergies and Chevron stated at the Africa Energy Week 2025 event that the use of seismic imaging technologies could play a major role in unlocking Africa’s vast frontier oil and gas potential. They emphasized that the data obtained through these systems can help reduce risks in new exploration areas.
Emmanuelle Garinet, Vice President of Exploration Africa at TotalEnergies, explained that the company greatly benefited from this technology during the success of the Venus well:
“When we decided to drill the Venus well, it was a completely unexplored area, but thanks to seismic data and direct hydrocarbon indicators, our probability of success was over 50%,” she said.
Garinet also noted that the company secured an exploration permit in the Republic of Congo in less than six months and plans to begin drilling by the end of the year.
Chevron CEO Gavin Lewis highlighted the need for a stronger data infrastructure. He pointed out that Africa lacks the multi-client, high-quality subsurface datasets that have allowed regions like the Gulf of Mexico to repeatedly rediscover their oil potential.
Oil and gas spending across the continent rose by $6 billion in 2024, and total investment in the sector is expected to reach $54 billion by 2030.