Gambiaj.com – (DAKAR, The Gambia) – The Gambia National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) has announced a renewed push to attract global energy investors, unveiling a suite of offshore and onshore exploration opportunities at the 2025 MSGBC Oil, Gas & Power Conference in Dakar.
The presentation comes amid heightened regional interest, as neighboring Senegal’s Sangomar field begins to reshape West Africa’s petroleum map.
GNPC officials told delegates that the technical groundwork for renewed exploration has now been completed across four key offshore blocks—A1, A2, A4 and A5—positioning The Gambia for what they describe as its most competitive investment window in a decade.
The corporation confirmed that 4,000 km² of 3D seismic data is already available for investors evaluating the highly prospective Sangomar-adjacent Blocks A1 and A4.
“With world-class discoveries in close proximity, The Gambia is ready to get its turn in the light,” said Cany Jobe, GNPC’s Director of Exploration and Production. “Significant billion-barrel-in-place oil discoveries made in adjacent acreages provide for an excellent operating environment.”
Prospects Strengthened by New Geological Insights
According to GNPC, recent studies indicate that shelf carbonate and fluvial deltaic clastic plays within Gambian waters may hold high-quality reservoirs with strong sealing and source rock potential.
These interpretations build on earlier findings that placed Gambia’s offshore geology along the same prolific Mauritania-Senegal-Gambia-Bissau-Conakry (MSGBC) basin trend that has delivered major discoveries, including Sangomar, GTA, and Yakaar-Teranga.
Drawing from geological work previously highlighted by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, GNPC reiterated that the country’s offshore structures lie within a proven oil-generating petroleum system and that improved seismic coverage has now reduced technical uncertainties that previously held back exploration.
Onshore Leads Offer New Frontier Potential
Beyond the offshore acreage, GNPC also revealed opportunities in the country’s onshore basins, where recent geological and geophysical studies have identified multiple leads with both structural and stratigraphic trapping mechanisms in Paleozoic and Mesozoic formations.
These frontier prospects represent a new dimension of exploration for the country, which historically focused on offshore blocks.
Government Courts Investors With Attractive Fiscal Terms
The Gambia is now inviting exploration companies, service providers, and downstream partners to participate not only in upstream ventures but also in storage depot development and the expansion of the national retail fuel network.
Siddy Mendy, Petroleum Officer at the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, reinforced the government’s commitment to maintaining an investor-friendly regulatory framework.
“The Gambia has very attractive fiscal terms and extensive data coverage,” he said, underscoring the country’s ambition to compete with more established MSGBC players.
A Renewed Bid for Global Attention
The GNPC’s investment drive follows months of intensified diplomatic and technical engagements aimed at positioning the country as a credible exploration destination.
Industry analysts note that after years of subdued activity—exacerbated by earlier disputes over Block A1—the country is now attempting to reintroduce itself to the global market with stronger data and a more coherent licensing strategy.
With the MSGBC basin now considered one of the world’s most promising emerging hydrocarbon zones, Gambian officials hope the improved geological clarity and favorable investment climate will finally unlock long-awaited commercial discoveries.
