Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2012

There seems to be a dispute making the rounds over acreage offshore Kenya. In an email to a number of news outlets including Petroleum Africa, it was alleged that certain offshore exploration blocks Kenya has awarded encroach on Somalia’s territorial waters.

The email specifically mentions Block L5 which is currently under contract to several international firms led by US independent Anadarko Petroleum Corp. In the email it says that Block L5 is thought to have the highest concentration of oil.

The email was sent to this journalist by Bashir Mohamud, a former Somali diplomat, said that the pursuit of oil on this block was illegal as it lay within perimeters of Somali territorial waters in accordance with Article 10 of Somali Law No. 37 Territorial Sea and Ports (1972). Somalia has the right to territorial waters of 200 nautical miles (nm) and an Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 nm provided in UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

This allegation has not yet been independently confirmed but Petroleum Africa has contacted its own sources and will provide updates as information becomes available to us.

A complaint of this action by Kenya was sent to various organizations around the globe including the UN, AU, EU, and the Arab League by Mohamud which can be seen at http://www.somalitalk.com/2011/badda/difaac2011.html.

• NB: Below is the previous version of the above news from same source

Ex-Somali Diplomat Accuses Kenya of Illegal Block Awards

Published by PetroleumAfrica.com

Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2012

There seems to be a brouhaha making the rounds over acreage offshore Kenya. In an email to a number of news outlets including Petroleum Africa, it was alleged that certain offshore exploration blocks Kenya has awarded encroach on Somalia’s territorial waters.

The email specifically mentions Block L5 which is currently under contract to several international firms led by US independent Anadarko Petroleum Corp. In the email it says that Block L5 is thought to have the highest concentration of oil.

The email was sent to this journalist by Bashir Mohamud, a former Somali diplomat (unconfirmed) and said that the pursuit of oil on this block was illegal as it lay within perimeters of Somali territorial waters in accordance with Article 10 of Somali Law No. 37 Territorial Sea and Ports (1972). Somalia has the right to territorial waters of 200 nautical miles (nm) and an Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 nm provided in UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

This allegation has not yet been independently confirmed but Petroleum Africa has contacted its own sources and will provide updates as information becomes available to us.

A complaint of this action by Kenya was sent to various organizations around the globe including the UN, AU, EU, and the Arab League by Mohamud which can be seen at http://www.somalitalk.com/2011/badda/difaac2011.html

Source: http://www.petroleumafrica.com/en/newsarticle.php?NewsID=13318