Senegal to offer 10 offshore blocks in 2020 license round

ASKER, NORWAY – The National Oil Company of Senegal, PETROSEN, has announced the launch of the country’s first offshore licensing round, to be launched at the MSGBC Basin Summit & Exhibition in Senegal in January 2020. The round will be open for six months - until the end of July 2020 - and will comprise 10 offshore exploration blocks.

Senegal’s MSGBC basin is home to several recent high-profile oil and gas discoveries, set in a variety of play types, both on and off the carbonate shelf. These include the Albian sandstone shelf edge SNE oil field - the largest global discovery of 2014 - the 25 tcf Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project - the largest gas discovery of 2015 - and the Lower Cenomanian sandstone basin floor fan Yakaar-1 gas well - the largest global discovery of 2017. All are located offshore Senegal, within ~100 km of the Dakar Peninsula, leaving a vast area yet to be explored.

Beyond these significant discoveries, modern exploration activity has been limited in the region. Two new wells are to be spudded in 2020 in AGC and Guinea-Bissau, south of Senegal and in close proximity to blocks in the upcoming license round. Wolverine-1 (CNOOC) and the Atum and/or Anchova (Svenska/FAR) prospects will target shelf edge plays and give vital information about similar plays in the open blocks. The majority of the blocks and acreage offered in the licensing round are in ultra-deepwater depths, as operators plan to target the large, clean, well-sorted sands of the unrestricted basin floor.

Speaking at the launch during Africa Oil Week Senegal’s Minister of Petroleum and Energy, H.E. Mouhamadou Makhtar Cissé, commented, “I would like to state the immense opportunities that exist in Senegal, as well as reassure a stable regulatory and investment framework. Investors should be excited and ready to take on the challenge to take advantage of Senegal’s opportunities within its oil and gas sector.”

TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company holds a range of data across this acreage to support the licensing round, including 2D seismic, 3D seismic, Multibeam and Seafloor Sampling data. The company is also currently acquiring additional 3D seismic data to provide potential bidders with a greater subsurface understanding ahead of bid submissions.