The first test-drilling for oil in Nigeria was at Ihuo (or Iho), near Owerri, present-day, Imo State, 1950.

The first test-drilling for oil in Nigeria was at Ihuo (or Iho), near Owerri, present-day, Imo State, 1950.

Petroleum exploration in Africa was started by Shell D’arcy in the 1930s and today still holds a very high deposit of Hydrocarbons, that have not been drilled.

However, the first commercial oil field was discovered in 1956 at Oloibiri, present-day Bayelsa State, in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.