Gambia’s government announced that it had signed a contract with BP to explore oil and gas off its coast.
The country’s Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Fafa Sanyang, says BP will carry out an initial environmental impact assessment at the A1 offshore block.
“Following this, they will work on a two-year drilling programme”, Sanyang said.
The A1 block was one of two that President Adama Barrow’s government stripped from Norwegian-listed African Petroleum Corporation in 2017, citing expired licenses.
The company disputed this, launching arbitration proceedings in October 2017. No resolution has been announced on the case.