International News
Oyster awarded exploration blocks off Djibouti
September 20, 2011 · 10 Comments
GUERNSEY, UK – Djibouti’s government has awarded Oyster Oil & Gas four blocks covering an area of 14,100 sq km (3.5 million acres).
The company says Djibouti is at an early stage in terms of exploration, with limited data to go on. But Oyster is confident that numerous potential oil-bearing basins were formed with the break-up of Gondwanaland, the main ones being the Guban and Red Sea basins.
Of the four concessions, the mainly onshore block 1 also extends into the shallow water of the Gulf of Aden in the southern part of the country, and borders Somaliland. Block 1 covers an area of 3,400 sq km (840,000 acres) and is located in the Guban basin, which occupies the southwest part of the Gulf of Aden margin. There is evidence of an active hydrocarbon system with oil seeps and quantities of oil recovered from wells drilled in Somaliland in addition to analogues with the Yemen’s Jurassic oil fields.
Block 3 is in deepwater in the Red Sea basin, and covers an area of 2,300 sq km (568,342 acres). The Red Sea basin is more than 1,600 km long and 360 km wide, and includes various oil and gas producing provinces such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Sudan. Oyster adds that the northern Red Sea basin is a proven oil source with strong correlations and several discoveries, while the southern Red Sea is a late Miocene province with various active petroleum systems. The basin as a whole provides evidence of oil generation, migration pathways and trapping.
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By Mo Guled
Tags: Djibouti, Oyster Energy, Puntland, Red Sea oil, Somaliland
Readers Comments (10)
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As some African-Americans would say: Mama we be rich!
ALL of Somalia weyn has OIL, that's why we are blessed as a nation with so much natural resources.
Jabuuti our sister country isn't a separate country, under the eyes of the ppl of somalia, jabuuti iz part of somalia & will always be, it's just a matter of time before jabuuti reunites (somalia).
Ps thanks for not recognizing somaliland cuz it would set a bad precedent for somalia.
Is this another joke loool. Is this Djibouti oil exploration expedition another joke similar to the
Puntland invasion Piracy of the Somaliland Oil rich Sanaag regions lool. The Somaliland Govt. must
ascertain that Djibouti oil adventures must not infringe the SL border oil Rich Regions of Awdal/Saaxil.
I am happy for our Djibouti brothers but our government should make sure that they do not cross our border intentionally or unintentionally to avoid serious disputes later on. May all the Somalis prosper in peace.
@ mohamed cheers
Don't hate brother. Congratulate! Say Mashallah Allah yazeed wa yubaraki! The people of Djibouti unlike Somalia have so common sense, ambitions and direction. They want to develop and stand tall. The people and government of Somaliland should work more closely with the nation of Djibouti and increase are bilateral ties. We should promote tax free cross border trade, coordinate on common regional issues (piracy), formulate common standards in are financial sectors, and conduct joint military exercises.
Dijbouti Hanolatoo!
@Warya
Am not against Djibouti, Puntland,Somalia in their internal national businesses. My only intentions were that the Somaliland Wealth should not be snatched unlawfully by Djibouti similar to the bad behaviour of Puntland on the other side of the Somaliland border which's known to disputedly claim the SL oil Rich parts of the Sanaag Region. All Somalis would be better off if they stick to the Colonial demarcation maps drawn
prior to post Colonial Eras. Thanks Mudane Warya I like and enjoy your style of writings.
Cheers and bye for now.
Jabutians are our brothers and am wishing them for the best. Hewever they are struggling to get rid of a well known dictator who have been sucking blood from his own people let alone Somalia or Somaliland. If you give a close look at his movements whenever good news comes comes from Somaliland he would either invite Sharif to Jabouti or would land in at Mogadisho Airport to meet Sharif. Gues what was happening in Somaliland when he flew to Mogadishu?
Ahh… Jibouti… The little country that exists because Somaliland isn’t recognised! LOL… I keed, I keed…
Maxamuud-Aar
@mohamed cheers
lol sxb no doubt there is oil in Sanaag but puntland isnt greedy we will share with somaliland but only if they withdrew peacefuuly from Sool, Sanaag and Cayn (SSC) puntland will be like Dubai when the oil is drilled out.
As a Djiboutian who is frustrated by the current authoritarian and corrupt nature of the regime, I don't want oil to be exploited, if there. I would rather wait till a responsible government comes to place, until we're reassured that oil will benefit ALL Djiboutians and not just the clique in power…There's just too much corruption now and I'm sure we won't benefit from the oil if exploited under these conditions…
Kheir inshallah…This country has just so much potential, too bad it's ruled by a mafia-like regime that is the main obstacle to development.