Kevin Okyere-led Springfield E&P Dominates Ghana’s Oil Sector

Springfield Exploration and Production Limited, Ghana’s first indigenous independent oil company to begin deep offshore operations, is no doubt, a household name among the country’s industry players.

Led by its Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Okyere, a renowned Ghanaian entrepreneur and business leader, the company has despite the vicissitudes of  doing business in the oil sector broken glass ceilings, emerging stronger after every challenge.

Emmanuel Addeh writes that the arrival of its latest Deepsea Bollsta deep offshore rig, contracted by the company to begin the execution of its well appraisal mandate, after a long-drawn-out court case, may have finally removed any doubt about whether Springfield is truly Ghana’s first indigenous oil giant.

A History of Performance

Founded in 2008, the Springfield Group has since commencing operations become one of the key pioneers and  players in the oil and gas industry in the West African country.

From its humble beginning that year, the company is now at the forefront of the oil industry in Ghana, with activities that span the exploration and production of oil and gas, as well as the transportation, storage and trading of hydrocarbons.

Operating as a fully integrated entity across the entire value chain of the oil and gas industry, in 2010 Springfield obtained its bulk distribution company licence from Ghana’s National Petroleum Authority (GNPA) for the procurement, sale and distribution of petroleum 2010 products to oil marketing companies and refineries.

Indeed, over a period of five years, the company supplied about 12.5 per cent of Ghana’s petroleum product requirements and became a leading exporter of refined products to neighbouring land-locked countries like Mali and Burkina Faso.

It was the first independent Ghanaian entity to lift the Government of Ghana’s crude oil entitlement from the TEN field in 2016 and 2017.

In the upstream, following its acquisition of a permit to provide services to the upstream petroleum industry in Ghana in 2011, Springfield before going full throttle, had become heavily involved in the provision of oilfield services, supplying vessels, logistics, subsea equipment, oil rigs, marine construction equipment and maintenance services.

A Man & His Magic

As expected, every vision must have its chief ‘visioner’ and facilitator. That man is Kevin Okyere, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Springfield Group.

A dynamic, astute entrepreneur gifted with skills in business strategy, finance and negotiations for the development of high-end commercial and developmental projects, Okyere has demonstrated exceptional leadership, strategic vision, and unwavering dedication to sustainable development, driven by a passion to contribute to Ghana and indeed Africa’s economic growth.

 Beginning his journey in the telecommunications industry and focusing on equipment evolution, network design, and information technology, over the past 18 years, he has established and managed multiple successful businesses, laying the foundation for the Springfield Group.

Under Okyere’s leadership, the company has become a leading player in the oil industry, extending at one point beyond Ghana to Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil market, with the establishment of Springfield Ashburton Limited in 2011. This move made Springfield the only Ghanaian company involved in energy-related trade in Nigeria till date.

In 2019, Kevin led Springfield’s drilling of the Afina-1X well, resulting in significant discoveries of gas, critical, and light oil at a depth of 1030 meters. This find more than doubled Springfield’s proven oil reserves to 1.5 billion barrels and added 0.7tcf of gas.

Described as a ‘glass ceiling breaker’, in line with his vision of aiding the sustainable development of Ghana through contributions to the economy, today, Springfield is the majority interest holder (84 per cent) of West Cape Three Points Block 2, with the GNPC and its exploration company, EXPLORCO, holding the remaining interest.

Born in Ghana, Okyere hails from a family of entrepreneurs. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Ghana and later pursued further studies in the United States.

His career spans over two decades, with extensive experience in the energy sector. No wonder he is reputed to have expanded operations, increasing revenue by up to 500 per cent.

Giant Strides

Springfield Exploration and Production (E&P) Limited, has made significant strides in the industry since its inception. In exploration and production, it successfully explored and produced oil in Ghana’s West Cape Three Points Block.

The Okyere-led group made Ghana’s first privately-led oil discovery in 2019, with an estimated 1.5 billion barrels of oil reserves.

In terms of operational milestones, Springfield achieved first oil production in 2020 in Ghana, with a production capacity of about 10,000 barrels per day and gas successfully developed the Springfield Field.

These achievements have not gone unnoticed by industry players. For its hardwood, Springfield received the 2018 Ghana Energy Awards for “Indigenous E&P Company of the Year”; 2019 Petroleum Commission’s Excellence Awards and “Best Local Content E&P Company”

Not done, the company in 2020 also got the Ghana Oil and Gas Awards for “E&P Company of the Year”.

In terms of community development, the company has supported education for over 500 students with scholarships, contributed to local infrastructure projects and carried out healthcare programmes in rural communities.

It has partnered GNPC for exploration and production, collaborated with International Oil Companies (IOCs) for technical expertise and worked with local businesses for services and supplies.

Still exploring new blocks and opportunities, Springfield aims to increase production to 50,000 barrels per day as well as developing gas resources for domestic and export markets.

In 2021, Springfield’s Afina well discovery was named amongst the top 10 most significant global hydrocarbon discoveries in 2019.

The list, compiled by IHS Markit, a world class intelligence gathering organisation with over 5,000 analysts, data scientists, financial experts and industry specialists, also positioned Springfield as one of five global oil companies that made discoveries in Deepwater and the only indigenous company on the continent to do so.

Temporary Setback

In 2021, a Ghana High Court ordered Italian oil and gas firm, Eni and Vitol, to set aside 30 per cent of oil proceeds from the Sankofa Field in an escrow account, pending the final determination of an application filed by Springfield E&P.

As a background, Springfield E&P had filed a suit,  following Eni’s refusal to unitise the Afina oil block held by Springfield E&P and Sankofa Field operated by Eni and Vitol because the two oil blocks were said to straddle.

Earlier, the two oil companies were directed to unitise the two fields by the Ministry of Energy, but it did not happen, prompting Springfield to approach the courts for adjudication.

Among the reliefs sought by Springfield was an order directing at the Defendants to comply with the directive issued by the Minister of Energy in the letter of  April, 9 2020 to enter into an agreement with the plaintiff to produce and develop the accumulation of the petroleum in the Sankofa and Afina fields as a single unit.

The oil firm also wanted the court to direct that “any income, profits and other finds due Plaintiff from Defendant’s exploration and production activities in the Sankofa Fields be paid to the Plaintiff upon account having been taken”.

Springfield said it was forced to take the legal route following Eni’s reluctance to follow the Minister of Energy’s directive and for all parties to reach an amicable resolution to this unfortunate impasse.

“Springfield is not interested in stalling ongoing crude oil production on the Sankofa Field, and believes in fairness and justice for all, irrespective of their size and position. The consequences of this case for the Ghanaian oil industry will be systemic and immediate”.

Permanent Victory

That case has now been decided. An international tribunal, which eventually adjudicated between the government of Ghana and Eni Ghana Exploration and Production and Vitol Energy, affirmed that the government’s directive for unitisation was well within its legal rights.

In July, the court specified a maximum timeline of six months for the unitisation to be completed once the necessary work was undertaken.

The Big Deal

True to its promise to begin work within three months of the judgement, Springfield Exploration and Production Limited has already embarked on well appraisal activities.

 This is just  12 weeks after the international tribunal directed the government to permit the Ghanaian firm to complete the Afina-Sankofa unitisation.

On Thursday, October 17, 2024, the Deepsea Bollsta deep offshore rig, contracted by Springfield from the Norwegian company Northern Ocean, arrived at the Afina-1x Well at the West Cape Three Points (WCTP) Block 2 offshore.

The rig’s arrival marked the commencement of operations to execute the appraisal mandate, a critical step in the unitisation process outlined by the tribunal on July 8.

Eye on the Future

Springfield’s Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Okyere, expressed deep satisfaction with the milestone of the commencement of appraisal activities at the Afina-Sankofa assets. To him, the whole issue was not personal, but about ramping up oil production, in Ghana which is expected to significantly raise government’s revenues.

“I would like to basically announce to everyone here that the rig is finally in the country and we have commenced the appraisal programme. We are going ahead to build this appraisal well so that we can finally finish and stop the decline of Ghana’s production and hopefully help add more production to the oil and gas industry in Ghana.

“As the first Ghanaian company and the first African company to own and operate a deep offshore oil block, drill and find hydrocarbons, I think we need to give all ourselves an applause that we’ve really done very well.

“All I would like to say today is that if people can go deep in the ocean and find oil, it means that there’s nothing that a Ghanaian or the African can put their mind to that they cannot achieve,” he noted during a stakeholders’ event heralding the arrival of the deep offshore rig.

He stated that the company’s tenacity and resilience was a testament to its commitment to succeed and to motivate the average African that ‘nothing is impossible if they set their minds to it’.

He said: ‘‘We have a clear understanding of what being an upstream operator entails and so we have hired the best possible team with over 60 years of collective experience working for all the super-majors and majors of the world.

“We work with all the best blue-chip companies to execute all technical works, studies and drilling programmes. Being a smaller operator, but working with the same expertise and diligence as the big operators, we can make decisions swiftly to benefit all our stakeholders including the government and people of Ghana,” he added.

According to him, one of the most critical challenges in the industry at this time is how to secure the services of an efficient rig, expressing delight that Deepsea Bollsta was already at work.

“Our research has shown that during this busy time in the drilling industry, rigs would not be available for another year and yet Springfield managed to find one and drilling commenced.

“ This has all happened within a space of three months. It is worthy of note that consistent with its track record and show of resilience, despite what challenges Springfield has faced, it always bounces back stronger and find solutions for every situation it finds itself in.”

With an investment of circa $200 million for the ongoing well-test and appraisal, an incredible feat for an indigenous company, Okyere was upbeat about the outcome of the appraisal, saying the data before the firm remains very positive.

Elated community stakeholders,  including hundreds of fishermen also lauded the company, with Nana Kweku Amosa, a Fisherman from the Jomoro District praised Okyere, praising Okyere for his visionary leadership and courage in venturing into an area considered to be the exclusive preserve of foreigners.

Amosa said that the company, a wholly Ghanaian–owned firm must be supported to succeed just like Aliko Dangote was assisted by the state and its institutions to succeed in Nigeria.