Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited is betting that artificial intelligence (AI) can breathe new life into hundreds of oil wells previously destined for abandonment, potentially unlocking significant value from assets written off using conventional exploration methods.
Tony Attah, Managing Director and CEO of the Nigerian energy company, told attendees at the PwC BusinessDay Outlook event that AI-powered reinterpretation of seismic data could reveal bypassed reserves in more than 300 wells currently earmarked for decommissioning.
“Can you imagine a scenario where I deploy AI, and I can see clearly all I need to do is go back into those wells, sidetrack, and I’m back again,” Attah said, describing what he called the “first value” proposition for AI in oil and gas exploration.
Attah drew parallels to previous technological leaps in the industry. Early oil discoveries in Nigeria’s Niger Delta were made using 2D seismic interpretations in the 1970s and 1980s. The subsequent shift to 3D seismic technology revealed additional reserves and extended the productive life of fields previously thought depleted.
“Fields that were predicted to have died 20 years ago are still producing,” he noted, suggesting AI could deliver similar breakthroughs. “Within the limits of technology of the past, we have bypassed significant reserves.”
Renaissance Africa is sitting on terabytes of legacy seismic data that could be reanalysed using machine learning algorithms capable of detecting patterns and anomalies invisible to human interpreters or older computational methods.
Beyond reserve identification, Attah emphasised AI’s potential to accelerate decision-making in an industry where timing can determine project viability.
“AI for me is around the speed of decision, the value add, narrowing time to that decision,” he said.
The enthusiasm comes with caution. Attah acknowledged concerns around data security and competitive intelligence, revealing that Renaissance Africa plans to present what may be an industry-first AI governance policy to its board in March.
“One of the risks that I worry about is people running my business on ChatGPT,” he said, highlighting fears that employees using public AI tools could inadvertently expose proprietary information.
“All that needs to happen is someone in Malaysia asks, ‘Can you tell me Renaissance, this and that?’ And your competitive edge is gone.”
The CEO admitted his IT team has urged restraint on AI adoption, telling him to “slow down, slow down,” even as he remains “very, very optimistic, if anything super excited” about the technology’s potential.
