Lagos-based pipeline infrastructure company Oilserv has signed an agreement protocol with Gabon’s government to develop two offshore gas blocks and build supporting compression and treatment infrastructure, marking the Nigerian firm’s first entry into Central Africa.
The agreement, signed by Gabon’s Minister of Petroleum and Gas Clotaire Kondja and Oilserv Chairman and Group Chief Executive Officer Emeka Okwuosa, covers upstream development of the DEF-3 and D4-5 blocks alongside gas transportation, compression, and treatment infrastructure. The infrastructure is intended to support thermal power generation and industrial activity within Gabon.
The deal arrives as Gabon works to convert stranded gas reserves into domestic energy — a priority for a government seeking to reduce flaring and build out gas-to-power capacity. ExxonMobil and bp both signed exploration agreements with the country in late 2025, signalling renewed international appetite for Gabon’s hydrocarbon sector.
For Oilserv, the Gabon agreement represents a significant geographic step. The company has spent three decades building its track record almost entirely within Nigeria, completing more than 930 km of pipeline across 19 major projects. Its most recent milestone was the completion of its 303 km section of Nigeria’s Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline — the country’s largest gas infrastructure project to date, valued at $2.8 billion.
That domestic foundation now appears to be informing an outward push. The Gabon deal fits a broader pattern of Nigerian energy companies competing for gas infrastructure contracts as African governments accelerate efforts to monetise reserves that have long sat undeveloped.
Gabon’s position in Central Africa’s energy landscape makes it a strategically significant entry point. The country holds gas reserves that have historically been flared or left uncommercialised, and its government has been actively courting partners capable of building the infrastructure needed to bring those reserves into productive use.
Oilserv’s agreement covers both the upstream development of the blocks and the downstream infrastructure required to move and process the gas — a vertically integrated approach that mirrors the company’s model on large-scale Nigerian projects such as the AKK pipeline.
The deal has not yet moved to a formal production-sharing or concession agreement, and the protocol stage typically precedes detailed technical and commercial negotiations. No timeline for first gas or capital expenditure figures were disclosed.
