Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko has fired a dramatic opening salvo in the country’s resource renegotiation drive, declaring a BP gas contract unfair, revoking 71 mining licences, and ordering the accounts of a major Indorama subsidiary frozen until it pays the state approximately 380 million euros ($438 million).
In a nationally televised statement, Sonko said the government’s review found that the gas contract for the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim offshore project, operated by BP, was “one-sided and unfair.” He pledged to publish full details of all the contracts reviewed, spanning energy, fishing, and infrastructure sectors. BP did not respond to requests for comment.
The government has also announced that talks to nationalise the Yakaar-Teranga gas project, currently operated by Kosmos Energy — which holds a 90% stake — are nearly concluded, with Senegal expected to retake the block at no cost within weeks. Kosmos’ licence for the field expires in July.
Senegal’s state-owned Industries Chimiques du Sénégal (ICS), controlled by Singapore-based Indorama Corporation, has had its accounts frozen until it settles an outstanding debt of 250 billion CFA francs owed to the state. Indorama did not respond to requests for comment.
The sweeping moves come as Senegal wrestles with a debt burden that reached 132% of GDP at the end of 2024, according to the International Monetary Fund, which froze its lending programme after a government audit revealed misreported debt figures. Sonko framed the renegotiations as essential to rebuilding state finances and delivering cheaper energy to industries and households.
Among the licences cancelled are several offshore blocks — Diender Offshore, Differe, Cayar Offshore Shallow, St Louis Offshore Shallow, and Rufisque Offshore — with Sonko stating the previous perimeters were “too vast” and did not meet international best practices. He also said many infrastructure projects had overcharged Senegal by an average of 15%, costing the country hundreds of millions of euros.
Notably absent from Thursday’s statement was any update on Australia’s Woodside Energy, which operates the Sangomar oil and gas field — the project that made Senegal an oil-producing nation when it came online in June 2024. “We are still a long way from having completed this work,” Sonko said, signalling the review would continue throughout his term.
Source: bairdmaritime.com