In this episode of The Energy Executive 360 Podcast, we sit down with Ian Cloke, Co-Founder & COO of Afentra, to explore his extraordinary career in global oil & gas exploration — from getting lost in the jungles of Borneo as a PhD student to discovering billion-barrel oil basins across Africa.

With more than 30 years of experience spanning companies including Conoco, Mobil, and Tullow Oil, Ian shares the highs, failures, uncertainty, and resilience required to survive in one of the highest-risk industries in the world.He takes us inside the reality of exploration drilling: the sleepless nights before wells, the pressure of making billion-dollar decisions with incomplete information, and the emotional rollercoaster of going from “hero to zero” — and back again — within days.

Ian also reflects on the journey of building Afentra during one of the toughest periods in modern energy history. Launching the company in 2020 at the peak of anti-oil sentiment and low oil prices, he explains why he and the team believed the world still needed pragmatic, balanced energy thinking — and why Africa remains one of the biggest long-term opportunities in global energy.

What you’ll learn:

⬛ The emotional reality of oil & gas exploration and discovery

⬛ Why resilience is the most important skill in the energy industry

⬛ Lessons from discovering over 1 billion barrels of oil in Uganda

⬛ The story behind Kenya’s first oil discovery

⬛ How intuition, science, and experience combine in high-stakes decision-making

⬛ Why exploration geologists must become comfortable with uncertainty

⬛ The dangers of bad decision-making during high oil-price environments

⬛ Building Afentra during the 2020 “peak green” anti-oil climate

⬛ Why the best opportunities are often where nobody else is looking

⬛ The future of Africa’s role in global energy markets

⬛ Why the energy transition must be about “and,” not “or”

⬛ The importance of secure, affordable, and balanced energy systems

Follow Ian Cloke & Afentra

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-cloke...

Website: https://www.afentraplc.com/

The Energy Executive 360 with Emilio Faulmata

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TEE360 Studio: https://www.emiliofaulmata.com

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