Oil and gas in Somalia: where exploration stands

Where Xidig members may contribute

• Skills and training: petroleum engineers, geoscientists and HSE (health, safety and environment) specialists can support training through recognised institutions.
• Transparency: economists and accountants can help explain revenue terms and contracts as they are published.
• Environmental and social safeguards: marine environment, fisheries and community consultation expertise.
• Energy alternatives: members in LPG distribution, clean cooking or solar can work on today's needs.

Possible services, research, supplier or collaboration roles

• Research: a plain-language tracker of exploration milestones and published contracts.
• Clean cooking and LPG: distribution, safety training and cylinder testing.
• Local-content preparation: skills inventories for supply and service roles, if exploration moves to development.

Who may find this useful

• Petroleum professionals in the diaspora.
• Journalists, researchers and civil-society groups following natural resources.
• Businesses in fuel import, storage and LPG.
• Students in geology, engineering and economics.

Where exploration stands

The legal basis. The Petroleum Law was ratified on 8 February 2020. Trade press at the time reported that it provided for SONOC "as a government-controlled entity charged with participating in petroleum operations" and for a Somali Petroleum Authority as regulator. See The Petroleum Law 2020 and the Somali Petroleum Authority, explained.

SONOC's status.

• A 2026 academic paper states: "SONOC is currently non-operational due to incomplete institutional structures, particularly the absence of a formally appointed Board of Directors."
• The Somali Petroleum Authority's press releases (2020–2025) contain no SONOC news. Xidig found no decree, board appointment or budget line.
• The government's US$2.1M proposal would presumably cover setting up the company, but it does not say.

Exploration, step by step.

• What the minister said: in July 2026 the petroleum minister was reported as saying the current phase would "determine whether commercially viable hydrocarbon reserves exist".
• Resource estimates: a US government trade guide says Somalia "may have at least 30 billion barrels of oil and gas reserves", citing geo-seismic studies. This is an unverified estimate, not proven reserves.
• Terms of the Türkiye agreement: the agreement text has not been published on the official sites Xidig checked. Commentators report cost recovery of up to 90% of output and a royalty of up to 5%; a Goobjoog News columnist has criticised these terms. Treat these as reported, not confirmed.

Energy use today.

• Fuel: "Somalia imports all of its petroleum products for industrial and domestic consumption" (National Petroleum Policy, 2017).
• Electricity: Somalia's statistics bureau notes that "Somalia's electricity sector relies heavily on diesel-powered generators, making electricity tariffs highly sensitive to changes in fuel prices" (March 2026).
• Cooking: "Charcoal (47.9 percent) and firewood (41.3 percent) are the two energy sources most used for cooking" (US government trade guide).
• Bottled gas: liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is imported and sold in cylinders in major cities. A 2024 report from Mogadishu describes growing competition among suppliers.
• Fuel import values: Xidig could not obtain a reliable figure for the value of fuel imports.

What this means (Xidig's interpretation).

• A gas processing plant needs a gas supply. Unless and until a discovery is confirmed and developed, which usually takes years, the proposed gas plant has no feedstock.
• Replacing imported fuel in the near term depends more on imports, storage, LPG distribution and renewable power than on domestic gas. See Heavy fuel oil or solar?.
• A national oil company's value depends on its governance: a board, clear rules and transparent accounts.

Federal and member-state questions. Petroleum ownership and revenue sharing are contested. Puntland's and the federal government's ministers exchanged public statements over exploration in 2024, and in December 2022 the federal ministry rejected a licence issued by Somaliland to Genel Energy; according to Garowe Online, Somaliland has insisted on a right to explore without Mogadishu's permission. Xidig reports these as statements and takes no position. See The Petroleum Law 2020 and the Somali Petroleum Authority, explained.

Dependencies and implementation constraints

• A discovery, followed by appraisal and development, before any gas plant.
• Governance: SONOC's board and rules; published contracts.
• Agreement between federal and member-state authorities on ownership and revenue.
• Security and infrastructure for any onshore or offshore operations.

Risks and unknowns

• Dry wells: exploration wells often find no commercial hydrocarbons.
• Conflict over resources between levels of government.
• Contract terms that are unpublished or disputed.
• Environmental risk to fisheries and coasts.
• Overbuilding: investing in processing before supply is proven.

Questions members should verify before acting

1. Has Curad-1 been completed, and what were the results?
2. Has SONOC's board been appointed, and what is its mandate?
3. Where would the proposed gas plant be, and where would its gas come from?
4. Have the Türkiye and other agreements been published?
5. What do member-state authorities say about the relevant blocks?

What is confirmed, and what isn't

Confirmed

• The two proposals, their printed costs and pre-feasibility status.
• The exploration milestones listed above, from official and trade sources.
• The official statement that Somalia imports all its petroleum products.

Our interpretation

• The gas plant has no feedstock until a discovery is confirmed and developed.

Not yet verified

• SONOC's current legal and operational status.
• Curad-1 results.
• Fuel and LPG import values.
• The Türkiye agreement's fiscal terms.

Relevant next steps

• Follow the Somali Petroleum Authority and the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources for Curad-1 results and SONOC news.
• Be cautious with reported reserve figures until a discovery is confirmed.