The government of Somalia has launched its first offshore licensing round.
The government of Somalia has launched its first offshore licensing round.
The 2020 Somali licensing round features up to seven blocks, which are estimated to be among the most prospective areas for hydrocarbon exploration and production in Somalia. The round will open on 4 August and close on 12 March 2021.
Somalia’s new Petroleum Law completed its legislative process earlier this year. The law includes a revenue sharing agreement which indicates how future revenues from the development of the industry will be shared between the Federal Government, the Federal Members States and their local communities.
This agreement has now been ‘road-tested’ with the first revenues, which were recently generated from rental payments by Shell and ExxonMobil. The law also includes a production sharing contract model.
Abdirashid Mohamed Ahmed, minister of petroleum and mineral resources said: ‘The opportunities for the international exploration and development majors are enormous. Somalia is committed to attracting investment and promoting partnership and business in all segments of the oil and gas industry value chain. This event is the starting point to allow the Somali Government to better showcase the vision that our country has for our petroleum and gas industry to potential foreign investors.
