Ghana is set to increase its stake in the Jubilee oilfield as part of a licence extension agreement that will allow continued production from the country’s flagship offshore assets well into the next decade, while also supporting efforts to arrest output decline through additional drilling.

The government has approved extensions to the West Cape Three Points and Deep Water Tano Petroleum Agreements, which cover the Jubilee and Twenboa Enyenra Ntomme fields. The approval paves the way for Ghana to deepen its direct participation in the assets operated by Tullow Oil, with partners including Kosmos Energy.

Under the revised terms, the petroleum agreements will be extended to 2040, subject to parliamentary ratification. From July 2036, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation’s interest in the Jubilee and TEN fields will increase by an additional 10 per cent, with the shares of the joint venture partners reduced on a pro rata basis.

The licence extensions are also tied to a revised development plan for Jubilee, which now includes up to 20 additional wells. This is expected to support production sustainability and increase recoverable reserves over the life of the field, strengthening Ghana’s long term revenue prospects from the asset.

Kosmos Energy, one of the partners in the Jubilee and TEN projects, in a statement said the extension would translate into higher proven and probable reserves. The company indicated that the amended plan of development is designed to counter natural decline at the mature field and unlock additional value.

The approval comes as new drilling activity begins to lift production at Jubilee. The second producer well in the 2025 to 2026 development campaign, known as J 74, has been successfully drilled and completed and is expected to come on stream shortly. The well encountered about 50 metres of net pay and has been completed in three zones, similar to an earlier well that began producing in mid 2025.

Based on initial flowback results, production from J 74 is expected to exceed 10,000 barrels of oil per day. With the new well online, gross production from Jubilee is projected to start 2026 at close to 70,000 barrels per day, up from an average of about 59,000 barrels per day recorded in the fourth quarter of 2025.

In addition to the two producer wells already drilled, the partnership has approved five more wells for 2026, comprising four producers and one injector. Drilling of the next producer well has already commenced as part of efforts to stabilise output and slow the rate of decline at the field.

The TEN project is also set to benefit from changes under the revised arrangements. The partners have agreed final sale and purchase terms to acquire the floating production storage and offloading vessel used at TEN at the end of its current lease in 2027. Ownership of the vessel by the partnership is expected to reduce operating costs and improve the project’s economics.

Ghana’s increased stake in Jubilee and TEN is seen as a strategic move to maximise national benefits from its offshore petroleum resources, particularly at a time when public finances remain under pressure. By securing longer production horizons and a larger equity share, the state stands to earn higher revenues from oil production in the later years of the fields’ lives.

The licence extensions now await parliamentary approval, after which the revised terms will formally take effect, anchoring Ghana’s participation in two of its most important oil producing assets for the next 15 years.