Petralon Energy, led by Nigerian power mogul Ahonsi Unuigbe, has restarted manufacturing on the Dawes Island Discipline in Rivers State, bringing oil to the floor from a web site first found 46 years in the past and 22 years after it was initially awarded as a marginal discipline within the first Marginal Discipline Bid Spherical.
Chevron struck hydrocarbons at Dawes Island in 1979, however the discipline by no means took off. It was later categorised as certainly one of Nigeria’s early marginal fields in 2003, but remained idle till Petralon, via its subsidiary Petralon 54, took over as operator in 2022. The corporate accomplished the DI-2 properly in June 2025, marking the primary regular stream of oil from the shallow-water asset.
The restart feeds into Nigeria’s “Venture One Million Barrels” plan, which leans on homegrown corporations to assist shut the nation’s output hole as world oil majors reduce. “Each incremental barrel issues at a time when the nation is underproducing,” mentioned a senior official on the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Fee.
Group-first strategy
Alongside drilling, Petralon established Host Group Improvement Trusts (HCDTs) for Ogoloma and Koniama. Although the Petroleum Trade Act requires such trusts, the corporate took further steps, funding consciousness applications to make sure residents might determine their very own priorities.
“The actual power right here is that it offers communities the ultimate say in how advantages are used,” mentioned Kenneth Uzor, Petralon’s CSR supervisor. Backed by 3 p.c of working prices, the trusts have helped keep peace in an space the place many initiatives have been disrupted up to now.
Petralon plans to scale output at Dawes Island and pursue extra upstream prospects. Its mixture of strong technical execution and group possession might function a mannequin for reviving dormant fields whereas strengthening Nigeria’s power safety.
Unuigbe’s path past Nigeria
For Unuigbe, the milestone crowns a profession that has spanned finance, public service, and power. He started in banking, working at Citibank and Stanbic IBTC, the place he organized greater than $2 billion in financing throughout industries. His transition into authorities got here when he turned Edo State’s first Commissioner for Finances and Planning, serving to the state safe a $150 million World Financial institution mortgage.
That blend of monetary and coverage expertise set the stage for his transfer into oil and fuel. He co-founded First Hydrocarbon Nigeria, the place he performed a central function in structuring the $147.5 million acquisition of OML 26 from Shell’s joint venture. In 2014, he launched Petralon Vitality, a agency created to help native operators whereas remaining aggressive towards worldwide majors.
His affect now stretches past Nigeria. Unuigbe owns near 48 million shares—about 11 p.c—in Africa Oil Corp., a stake value roughly $70 million, alongside pursuits in Prime Oil & Gasoline and BTF Oil & Gasoline. Again residence, he chairs the Nigerian Change Group, the place he has develop into a number one voice for stronger company governance.
