Türkiye eyes deep-sea oil drilling off Somalia coast in 2025

[Deeq A.]

Mogadishu (Caasimada Online) – Türkiye hopes to conduct a deep-sea oil drilling operation off the Somali coast in 2025, the country’s energy minister said on Friday.

This development comes shortly after the two nations agreed to extend their cooperation by signing an oil and natural gas cooperation deal last month.

This development marks a significant milestone in strengthening ties between Türkiye and Somalia, which have been bolstered by a defense deal signed earlier this year.

Türkiye and Somalia signed a deal on offshore oil and natural gas cooperation earlier in March, further solidifying their bilateral relations.

“With this agreement, we will carry out joint activities to bring Somalia’s resources to the Somali people. We aim to strengthen Türkiye’s presence in the Horn of Africa with new collaborations in the energy field,” Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

The deal is part of a broader effort to strengthen economic and defense ties between the two nations.

In February, Türkiye signed a defense and economic cooperation agreement with Somalia, including maritime security support provisions to help the African country defend its territorial waters.

Türkiye has also invested heavily in Somalia’s education, infrastructure, and health sectors and provided extensive humanitarian aid.

Offshore oil and natural gas cooperation

The deal includes transportation, distribution, refining, sales, and services operations for oil and other products from land and sea projects.

“There is a place on the Somali seaside we consider may have oil reserves. We will start seismic work. We want to do deep sea drilling in 2025,” Bayraktar said in an interview on private broadcaster NTV.

The agreement marks a significant step forward in the region’s exploration and production of oil and natural gas resources.

Somalia has long been believed to have substantial oil reserves. However, exploration efforts have been hindered by political instability and security concerns.

“Oil and natural gas exploration offshore from Somalia, which looks more like oil for now, will start very soon in the areas we have identified. We will maybe send our seismic (exploration) vessel there in the first phase,” he said separately in a panel without elaborating.

Bayraktar’s comments suggest that Türkiye is keen to move forward with exploration efforts in the region and is confident in the potential for oil reserves off the Somali coast.

Türkiye’s energy agenda

In addition to the Somali project, Bayraktar evaluated Türkiye’s energy agenda, including oil production in the Gabar field in Şırnak province, which has recently exceeded 40,000 barrels of daily output.

“Turkish Petroleum was producing 33,000 barrels of oil at the beginning of 2016. Today, only Gabar has exceeded 40,000 barrels of daily production. We aim to elevate Gabar’s daily production to 100,000 barrels by the end of the year. Intensive work continues in this regard,” Bayraktar said.

Moreover, he highlighted the economic contribution of the oil field. He said that in today’s terms, once daily production reaches 100,000, it corresponds to $3 billion in value that stays within the country.

He also said they have a very ambitious exploration program for 2024, with plans to drill 140 wells throughout the year.

The development of the oil field in Gabar is significant for Türkiye’s energy security and economic growth. The project is expected to generate significant revenue for the country and create new jobs in the energy sector.

Türkiye’s ambitious exploration program for 2024 is also a testament to the country’s commitment to increasing its energy production and reducing its dependence on foreign oil.

The program includes plans to drill 140 wells throughout the year, which will help to increase Türkiye’s oil production and reduce its trade deficit.

Iraq-Türkiye pipeline

The minister also touched upon the shutdown of the Iraq-Türkiye oil pipeline, which is still stuck in limbo nearly a year after the halt of oil deliveries.

“The Iraq-Türkiye Pipeline is a reflection of our neighborly relationship with Iraq, dating back to the 1970s. It is an important project for the region and the world oil market … We always kept the section of the line within our borders in working order,” he said.

The Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has been offline since March 2023, when Ankara halted flows following an arbitration ruling by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

The ICC ordered Ankara to pay Baghdad damages of $1.5 billion over what it said were unauthorized exports by Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) between 2014 and 2018.

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