Licensing
The Gambia’s offshore and onshore acreages has been divided into a total of 8 offshore blocks and 1 onshore block. See block map 1 (see map).
Licensing body
The Minister in accordance with Part VI of the Petroleum (Exploration, Development and Production) Act of 2014 has the authority to grant Petroleum Licences.
The Petroleum Commission in accordance with Section 5(e) of the Petroleum Commission Act, 2021 has been mandated with the conduct and coordination of activities related to licensing. At the end of such processes, the Commission makes recommendations to the Minister on the next line of action.
Criteria for obtaining a licence
The licensing process is governed by the Petroleum (Exploration, Development and Production) Act of 2004 and Section 29 of said Act stipulates the requirements for the eligibility of obtaining a license. The said Act can be downloaded by clicking the button.
Licensing procedure
The Gambia’s regulatory regime allow for interested Oil Companies that meet the criteria in Section 29 of the Petroleum (Exploration, Development and Production) Act of 2004 to acquire licences for blocks either through Direct Negotiation or through Licensing Rounds.
Oil Companies may directly negotiate for blocks at any time by either:
- Sending an expression of interest to info@petcom.gm, copying cjobe@petcom.gm and ktouray@petcom.gm;
- Directly engaging with the Petroleum Commission through telephone calls; or
- Sending in proposals based on the Model Petroleum, Exploration and Production Licence Agreement (PEPLA) including corporate, technical, and financial information. A copy of the Model PEPLA can be found on this website.
Alternatively, interested Oil Companies may participate in Licensing Rounds once they are announced by the Government, who ensures that the process is streamlined, transparent and ensures sufficient competition.
Two licensing rounds have been undertaken by the Government and led by the Commission, in 2017-2019 respectively. The processes were open, transparent, and fair bidding. The 2017 licensing Round was launched in November 2017 and concluded in April 2019 with the signature of a licence with BP. The key steps in the licensing round are as outlined in the flow-chat below.
The 2021 licensing Round was launched in October 2021 and concluded in February 2022 without the Government getting a preferred bidder.
Model PEPLA Terms
At the end of a negotiation during Licensing and if the interested company meets the technical and financial criteria, they will then enter into a Licence agreement with the Government based on the Model PEPLA. The model PEPLA can be downloaded below.