Panoro Energy ASA has named longtime Perenco executive Eric d’Argentré as its new chief operating officer and president. The appointment comes as the independent Africa-focused exploration and production (E&P) company seeks to build on recent output gains and advance upcoming development projects.

D’Argentré spent nearly 30 years at Perenco, an Anglo-French energy company, managing operations across Cameroon, the UK, Colombia, Ecuador, Turkey and Gabon. He also led group QHSE and worked on modernising operations in Trinidad & Tobago, bringing experience in asset management and brownfield optimisation that Panoro aims to apply in Africa.

“We are delighted to welcome Eric to Panoro. His considerable experience in managing operations, engineering and delivering complex projects makes him an excellent addition to Panoro’s senior management team,” CEO John Hamilton said in a statement on Tuesday (September 9).

“His appointment comes at a time when we have established Panoro as a significant independent oil producer in Africa with a portfolio of high-quality assets and numerous opportunities to drive our next phase of growth and value creation for our stakeholders, which Eric’s input will be invaluable towards achieving.”

London-based Panoro holds production, exploration and development assets in four countries in Africa, namely interests in Block-G, Block S, Block EG-01 and Block EG-23 offshore Equatorial Guinea, the Dussafu Marin, Niosi Marin and Guduma Marin licences offshore southern Gabon, the TPS-operated assets in Tunisia, and onshore Exploration Right 376 in South Africa.

In the first half of 2025, group working-interest oil production averaged 11,526 barrels per day (bpd), up 26% year-on-year. Second-quarter output stood at 11,064 bpd. Panoro revised its full-year guidance in August to 11,000–12,000 bpd, from a prior 11,000–13,000 range, after deferring some volumes in Equatorial Guinea.

Revenue reached $86mn, with EBITDA of $50.7mn and a net loss of $1.9mn. Capital expenditure (capex) was $26.2mn in the period, mainly directed at the Bourdon discovery offshore Gabon. Full-year capex guidance remains $40mn.

The Gabon Dussafu block continues to anchor Panoro’s portfolio, including the Bourdon find—estimated at 56mn barrels in place, with 25mn recoverable. It is the largest hydrocarbon column discovered to date at Dussafu, the company said in May, citing preliminary analysis of data.

With 72% of Gabon’s deepwater acreage still unexplored, the country plans to revise its current petroleum laws and offer new incentives to counter production decline in Central and West Africa, as reported by Newsbase, a sister publication of bne IntelliNews.

Panoro, listed on the main board of the Oslo Stock Exchange with the ticker PEN, paid a NOK 80mn ($7.44mn) cash distribution in the second quarter, bringing total 2025 payouts to NOK 240mn, and has spent NOK 68.8mn on share buybacks so far this year.

 

What to Watch

• Oil prices: Panoro realised an average of $66 a barrel in H1, with some post-period liftings above $70.
• Development: A final investment decision on the MaBoMo Phase 2 project in Gabon is targeted for H2 2026.
• Equatorial Guinea: Ceiba field output seen recovering in Q4 after downtime earlier this year.