Sahara Group Acquires 7 New Oil Rigs, Aims to Boost Production to 350,000 BPD Across Africa
Sahara Group, one of Africa’s leading energy and infrastructure conglomerates, is making bold moves to expand its footprint in the continent’s oil and gas sector. The company has announced plans to increase its upstream crude oil production to 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) within the next five years. This ambitious target will be driven by strategic investments in exploration, production, and technology, alongside the recent acquisition of seven state-of-the-art oil rigs.
Leste Aihevba, Chief Technical Officer at Asharami Energy—a Sahara Group upstream company—revealed the plans during a strategic briefing with investors at Africa Energy Week in Cape Town. “Our growth will be anchored on upgrading our exploration and production capabilities, improving execution capacity, and deploying cutting-edge rigs to accelerate production efficiency,” Aihevba said, emphasizing the importance of regional collaboration in positioning Africa as a global energy leader.
The seven newly acquired rigs are expected to significantly enhance Sahara’s production capacity across Nigeria and other operational regions. Two of the rigs are already on-site, with another two scheduled to arrive before the end of the year. One of the rigs, a 2000 HP Land rig named L-Buba, has already commenced gas development operations, with additional rigs set to support oil and gas development projects. These operations will be managed by Arahas Global Oilfield Services, Sahara Group’s dedicated oilfield management company.
Beyond hardware, Sahara Group is investing heavily in human capital and technological expertise. Aihevba highlighted that these investments aim to localize global technical knowledge, strengthen cross-border partnerships, and drive community-inclusive energy initiatives. “By combining infrastructure investments with talent development and local content participation, we are accelerating Africa’s energy transition while ensuring communities benefit directly from our projects,” he said.
Sahara’s expansion comes as Nigeria’s crude oil production continues to grow. According to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the country produced an average of 1.43 million bpd in August 2025, up 5.5% from the previous year, reaching 96% of its OPEC quota. Complementing its upstream efforts, Sahara Group recently brought its Afam 2 Power Plant in Rivers State online, adding 160 megawatts to Nigeria’s national grid, further showcasing the conglomerate’s commitment to building Africa’s energy infrastructure.
source: Nairametrics