Turkey has begun oil exploration off the coast of Somalia as Ankara implements a joint economic and defence cooperation pact it signed earlier with Mogadishu.
It started in Istanbul, Turkey's commercial capital, when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan saw off a ship. The ship was received at the port of Mogadishu by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, days later.
The seismic exploration vessel Oruç Reis made a 20-day journey from Turkey to the Horn of Africa country, guarded by the military as it navigated through the tricky Red Sea. Three Turkish frigates encircled the vessel throughout the journey that started on October 5, 2024.
This week, it docked at the Mogadishu port, which is managed by Al-Bayrak, a Turkish company.
“The very presence of Oruç Reis here today symbolises not just Somalia’s technological advancement but also our growing appeal to international investors,” President Mohamud said.
Earlier this year, Turkey and Somalia signed a defence and economic cooperation agreement during a visit to Ankara by Somalia Defence Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur “Jama.” It added to growing ties between Somalia and Turkey.
Turkey runs a military training base, a hospital in Mogadishu and traditionally sponsors hundreds of students from Somalia to study in Turkish universities.
“As part of the cooperation, Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) and Somalia’s petroleum authority signed a deal on joint onshore hydrocarbon exploration in Somalia,” said Turkish Energy minister Alparslan Bayraktar.
Bayraktar had witnessed the flagging off of Oruç Reis from Istanbul before travelling to Mogadishu for the start of the exploration mission.
The mission will carry out three-dimensional seismic studies off the Somalia coast.
Oruç Reis’s assignment is expected to last six months and will involve collecting seismic data for both oil and natural gas.
“This data will be analysed in the Turkish capital Ankara to identify potential drilling sites,” Turkish officials announced last week.
“This is more than just an exploration mission; it’s a testament to our commitment to harnessing our natural resources for the prosperity of our people,” President Mohamud said.
Somali Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre was so excited about the potential of the mission to generate wealth that he recalled the verses of a song by popular Somali singer Maryam Mursal.
“La caraabi gaajo, cayr xoolo laga dhaqay (hunger is being crushed while wealth is being created against poverty),” Barre recited amid applause.
Somali President Mohamud and Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar disembarking from the Oruc Reis Seismic Research Vessel docked at the Port of Mogadishu, Somalia on 25 October 2024.
Photo credit: Pool
Over the years, scientists have predicted viable deposits of oil, gas and minerals such as uranium, tin, gypsum, phosphate, guano, and coal and iron ore. There had been little exploration yet.
Lately, estimates have shown that Somalia has oil and gas reserves to the tune of 100 billion barrels.
Turkey has built relations with Somalia from non-economic issues such as humanitarian donations, education and other social support. Then it moved to defence.
When the country tied up defence and economic relations earlier this year, it generally received favourable perception by the Somali public.
Previously, Ankara offered huge support for drought-stricken Somalia, following Erdogan’s visit to Mogadishu as Prime Minister in 2011.
Ever since, Turkey has been the country that dared to invest in Somalia’s education, health, infrastructure as well as diplomatic ties.
Mogadishu’s port and airport were modernised and managed by Turkish companies, and Turkish Airlines began Mogadishu flights.
Not everyone is sold to the idea that Turkey comes in good faith, though.
“In two years, when the oil production starts in Somalia’s offshore blocks, the Turkish Oil Company, TPAO, will generate a predicted yearly output of oil worth over $5 billion, of which the FGS (Federal Government of Somalia) will pocket less than $200 million,” one Abdrhmn Sāmāwādē said on social mediaplatform X, formerly Twitter. He did not elaborate.
In two years, when the oil production starts in Somalia’s offshore blocks, the Turkish Oil Company, TPAO will generate a predicted yearly output of oil worth over 5 billion dollars of which the FGS will pocket less than 200 million dollars annually. pic.twitter.com/xZ6l9h8peh
But others, like Dr Ibrahim Mohamed Biriq, a geologist and professor at the State-run Somali National University in Mogadishu, believes it is time to tap Somalia’s mineral, oil and gas deposits.
“Geologically, there are large oil and gas accumulations in the wider Horn of Africa region,” Dr Biriq told The EastAfrican. “Signs are growing for a hydrocarbon system onshore and offshore Somalia, which is expected to be oil prone.”
