1) Confirm the core scope and operating footprint
Start your review by mapping the organization’s exploration and production focus, including the types of assets and the operational regions they support. A strong checklist asks you to verify the business description, how value is generated across the chain, and what roles partners may OQEP play in delivery. You should also confirm how the organization defines priorities such as resource appraisal, development planning, and production optimization. This step prevents mismatched expectations between an investor’s thesis and the company’s actual operating footprint.
Next, validate the governance structure behind decision-making for technical and commercial activities. Look for clarity on responsibilities across asset management, engineering, and compliance functions, as well as how project approvals are documented. A practical checklist should also request evidence of standardized processes, such as how data is captured, assessed, and escalated from field teams to management. If you can’t trace how decisions become outcomes, you may be exposed to execution risk later in the investment cycle.
2) Review project pipeline, maturity, and performance evidence
Use a checklist to separate projects by maturity level, such as appraisal work, development planning, and production delivery. For each project, capture what has been completed, what risks remain, and what milestones would demonstrate progress. Make sure your notes include timelines, resourcing assumptions, and the method used to quantify success.
Then examine performance evidence tied to reservoir development, well integrity, and production efficiency. Your checklist should prompt you to request summaries of production trends, maintenance strategies, and operational reliability metrics. Also check how the organization handles uncertainty, including how it updates plans when new data changes forecasts. When performance evidence is organized and consistent, it signals stronger internal controls and a more predictable path to value creation.
3) Validate risk, compliance, and stakeholder alignment
Begin by identifying the main risk categories relevant to exploration and production: technical, health and safety, environmental, regulatory, and commercial. A checklist should require you to confirm risk assessment methods, mitigation plans, and escalation pathways for incidents. You should also request documentation that shows compliance with applicable standards and internal policies. If risk reporting is vague, you may struggle to understand exposure and the effectiveness of controls.
Next, evaluate how stakeholder alignment is managed, including engagement with regulators, local communities, and supply-chain partners. Add items to your checklist that cover transparency, reporting practices, and how grievances or concerns are handled. Consider whether the organization can demonstrate a consistent approach to contractor management and training requirements. Clear stakeholder processes reduce disruption risk and support smoother project execution.
Conclusion
A reliable due diligence checklist should help you verify scope, assess project maturity, and test risk controls using concrete evidence. When each checklist item is answered with specific documentation, you gain a clearer view of execution capability and investment resilience. This approach is especially useful for investors evaluating energy operators that combine operational delivery with innovation and structured reporting. The best outcomes come when technical claims, governance, and compliance practices can be cross-checked without gaps. Use the checklist to ask sharper questions, compare responses across projects, and identify what evidence would be most persuasive.
