Somalia Says Offshore Oil and Gas Drilling Is One-Third Complete

GOOBJOOG NEWS | MOGADISHU: Somalia’s petroleum authority has said it is too early to say whether oil or natural gas had been found at an offshore exploration well being drilled by Türkiye, as crews advanced through the fourth stage of the deep-water operation.

The Curad-1 well has reached about 1,300 metres below the seabed, with drilling planned to continue to around 4,000 metres beneath the seabed, Somali Petroleum Authority Director General Abdulkadir Adan said.

“We are still in the drilling stage,” Adan said, cautioning that it was premature to draw conclusions about possible oil or gas deposits.

The well, located in Block 153 about 372 km northeast of Mogadishu, is being drilled by Turkish Petroleum Corporation using the drillship Çağrı Bey. The operation is one of Somalia’s most significant tests of its offshore petroleum potential.

Adan said drilling is divided into seven sections and the fourth section is now under way. Crews are replacing the casing as the well is progressively widened, with the current stage involving a move from 18-inch to 16-inch casing.

The operation had initially been expected to finish in October, but crews now expect to complete drilling by the end of September, Adan said.

He said there had been no accidents despite rough sea conditions. Around 470 to 480 personnel are working aboard the drilling and support vessels, with Turkish nationals accounting for about 20% of the workforce.

DEEP-WATER TEST

The well is being drilled in water about 3,500 metres deep. Combined with the planned 4,000 metres below the seabed, Curad-1 is targeting a total depth of roughly 7,500 metres.

The site was selected following three-dimensional seismic surveys carried out by Türkiye’s Oruç Reis research vessel, which surveyed about 4,464 square kilometres of Somali waters between October 2024 and June 2025.

The project represents Türkiye’s first deep-water drilling operation outside its own waters and is a major test of Somalia’s long-speculated offshore energy potential. However, the existence of commercially recoverable oil or gas remains unproven.

Adan said the answer would only become clearer once drilling reaches its planned depth and the necessary technical assessments are completed.

For now, he said, the operation remains focused on reaching that point, with the first well now expected to be completed by the end of September.