Kenya Gets Drilling Rig for First Oil Well, Set for November 1

Gulf Energy E&P BV SEZ has received a drilling rig in Mombasa, which it will use to drill Kenya's first commercial oil well in Turkana County on November 1, 2026.

The rig arrived at Kilindini Port on Friday aboard the ship MV Transit Sedanka, after sailing from Duqm Port in Oman. Gulf Energy Chief Executive Officer Paul Limoh said the rig is being offloaded by the Kenya Ports Authority, then it will be moved by road to Turkana.

The rig is called GW70, and it has a horsepower of 1,500, a measure of the engine's driving power. Gulf Energy said it is worth more than $20 million, and the company leased it from Great Wall Drilling Company (GWDC) under a long-term deal.

Company says project is on schedule

Limoh said the company is working to a strict timeline, and the oil project is still on track.

"All workstreams at Gulf Energy E&P BV SEZ are running to a tight project management schedule, and the project remains on course for First Oil production in December 2026," Limoh said.

Before drilling can start, the rig will go through commissioning and acceptance checks once it reaches Turkana.

Two-phase plan for South Lokichar oil

The rig will be used to drill the first well in the South Lokichar oil development, which sits in Turkana County. Gulf Energy plans to produce 20,000 barrels of crude oil daily in the first phase, then raise this to 50,000 barrels per day in the second phase.

Baker Hughes has been contracted to give integrated well services, while SLB will build the Early Production Facility (EPF), the plant that will process the oil once it comes out of the ground.

The South Lokichar development is going ahead under an investment programme estimated at $6 billion.

Kenya's Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) has said the first crude exports out of Mombasa are expected in the first quarter of 2027.

This is in line with the approved Field Development Plan, the official document that sets out how the oilfield will be developed.

Oil discovery finally nears production

Oil was first discovered in the South Lokichar Basin years ago, but the project faced delays before development picked up again under Gulf Energy. December 2026 is now the target date for first oil from the basin.

The government has said Kenya could earn more than $2.9 billion, about Sh371 billion, over the life of the project. This figure depends on international crude oil prices and how much oil is produced.

The first phase of development is expected to create work across drilling, logistics, oilfield services and other support businesses, as Kenya works toward becoming a commercial oil producer. The South Lokichar project is expected to turn Kenya from a country that only explores for oil into one that produces it commercially.