According to information WSRW received, Total’s massive block offshore Western Sahara was signed on 6 December 2011. WSRW revealed 29 November 2012 that Total is back in Western Sahara, working on behalf of the Moroccan government, which occupies parts of the territory.

The agreement is most probably a reconnaissance agreement – the same kind of agreement that the company held in the same area in the period 2001-2004. It is said that the agreement is valid for a period of 12 months.

This means that the newly discovered agreement will expire in three days from now - Thursday 6 December 2012. Total needs, in other words to assess this week, whether it will let the agreement expire without renewing (as they did in 2004), if they will prolong the agreement, or if they will upgrade it to a full exploration licence.

“Western Sahara Resource Watch calls on all owners of Total to immediately bring this issue with Total's management. They should request both a guarantee that no further exploration activity take place in occupied Western Sahara, and an explanation as to how this could happen in the first place”, stated Erik Hagen, chair of Western Sahara Resource Watch.