Murphy Oil Corporation has reported an oil discovery at the Bubale-1X exploration well in Block CI-709, around 64 km offshore Côte d’Ivoire.
Drilled in 2,376 m of water, Bubale-1X reached a total depth of 6,263 m. The well found 30 m of net oil pay across two reservoirs, with early analysis pointing to high-quality light oil.
Murphy Oil President and Chief Executive Officer Eric Hambly said the result supports the exploration potential of the company’s Côte d’Ivoire acreage. He said the company will now focus on evaluation work to define the discovery’s full potential.
Bubale-1X is the final well in Murphy Oil’s current three-well exploration campaign in Côte d’Ivoire. The company plans to move into the next evaluation phase, including one well in the second half of 2026 to test the discovery’s extent.
The well was spudded in late February by Murphy CI-709 Oil Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Murphy Oil Corporation and operator of Block CI-709. Murphy Oil holds a 90% working interest, while Société Nationale d’Opérations Pétrolières de la Côte d’Ivoire (PETROCI) holds 10%.
