Global oil and gas exploration company Tullow Oil (Tullow), in its continued oil exploration quest on the African continent, has discovered oil off the shores of  Cote D’Ivoire.

According to its website, the Paon-1X exploration well in the CI-103 licence offshore Côte d’Ivoire intersected good quality light oil in a Turonian fan system on Thursday, giving it confidence that it will make additional discoveries in waters to the west of its key Jubilee field in Ghana.

Tullow’s huge find in the Jubilee oil field in Ghana has been the brain behind its westwards oil hunt strategy in the hope of discovering more oil off the Ivory Coast.

Commenting on the discovery, Tullow’s Exploration Director, Angus McCoss said: “The discovery of light oil in our first well in CI-103 extends the proven play for oil westwards from our successes in Ghana and is encouraging for our future exploration efforts elsewhere in this licence. We look forward to further drilling in CI-103 during 2013.”

The successful exploration in the Ivory Coast followed disappointment in the country in April when the company drilled a dry hole.

Tullow owns 45 percent stake in the CI-103 licence and is partnered by US Oil giant, Anadarko Petroleum who own 40 percent, with the other 15 percent belonging to the Societé Nationale d’Opérations Pétrolières de Côte D’Ivoire (Petroci).

“The discovery is the first meaningful deepwater Ivory Coast success and de-risks several nearby lookalike prospects, high potential 2013 drilling candidates,” Morgan Stanley analysts said in a note.

British-owned Tullow already has several oil exploration and production interests across Africa.  It boasts 50 percent operated interest in seven onshore licences in Kenya and Ethiopia Rift Basins, covering in excess of 100,000 square kilometres.

The oil exploration company also has production interests in Gabon, Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritania, Congo and Equatorial Guinea, with two large appraisal and development programs in Ghana and Uganda.