Kosmos Energy said on Thursday that Senegal’s energy ministry has confirmed it has no plans to nationalise the Yakaar-Teranga gas field, in which Kosmos holds a 90% stake, but added it will return the licence by next July if no new partner joins the project.
Senegal’s Energy Minister Birame Souleye Diop said on Tuesday that the government wanted to nationalise Yakaar-Teranga, in which the state-run Petrosen holds a 10% stake. The two companies have been looking for at least one more partner to enter the project in order to progress a development plan but no breakthrough has been reached yet.
Kosmos became the operator of the Yakaar-Teranga gas field in 2023 after BP decided to exit. The company’s licence for the field runs out in July 2026.
“Kosmos Energy has worked hard with Petrosen to find a suitable partner and agree a commercially viable development concept for the field. In the absence of a new partner, Kosmos will work with Petrosen to transfer the licence back to the Senegalese state on, or before, the licence expiry in July 2026,” Kosmos said in a statement.