Block 131 – Offshore Somalia

About the Permit

Offshore Somalia represents one of the world’s last truly underexplored passive margin basins, with only a single offshore exploration well drilled along its 3,025 km coastline. Supported by the 2020 Somali Petroleum Law and modern PSA framework, the country offers a stable and investment-friendly environment for frontier oil and gas exploration. PetroQuest Africa holds the high-impact Block 131 license, covering 5,000 km² on the northeastern flank of the Mid-Somalia High.

Block 131 contains multiple proven petroleum systems, including pre-rift Karoo, Lower Jurassic syn-rift clastics, and post-rift Jurassic carbonate plays. A total of 86 mapped oil seeps across the block confirm an active and pervasive hydrocarbon charge system, with many seep locations coinciding with the independently mapped Leopard structure. The Leopard Prospect is a multi-level, multi-billion-barrel opportunity extending across more than 2,000 km² of closure and is considered analogous to Abu Dhabi’s giant Zakum Oil Field. Collectively, PetroQuest’s Somalia acreage is estimated to contain approximately 33 billion barrels of unrisked oil in place, positioning Offshore Somalia as East Africa’s last major frontier exploration opportunity.

Somalia Block 131 Leopard Prospect Technical Presentation

Somalia Project Brochure