So far, no oil and gas have been discovered in Western Sahara. Two exploration licences are today operated by foreign companies, both from Israel, both offshore.
Israel's NewMed Energy today announced it has signed a deal with Morocco to produce natural gas offshore Boujdour, bringing former Cairn Energy back into the occupied territory.
17 years of US private company engagement in exploring the oil potential of Western Sahara has come to an end.
Over the past 24 hours, WSRW has observed a resumed seabed exploration north of Dakhla, in the block operated by American oil company Kosmos Energy in collaboration with Scotland's Cairn Energy.
Kosmos and Cairn Energy are exploring for oil offshore Western Sahara, occupied by Morocco. This photo taken yesterday shows one of their supply vessels.
Kosmos and Cairn have renewed their licence - but did San Leon Energy abandon one of its licences? A new map from ONHYM suggests changes to the highly controversial oil exploration in the occupied territory.
Cairn Energy consistently includes occupied Western Sahara as part of Morocco.
Scotland's Cairn Energy states that its joint venture with American firm Kosmos Energy has dropped the oil exploration licence in occupied Western Sahara, but ... that it is now reapplying for part of the very same area.
"A hostile act likely to perpetuate the conflict and colonialism in Western Sahara". The Peace and Security Council of the African Union reiterates its position on the illegal exploitaiton of Western Sahara's natural resources.
"No oil drilling should take place in the territory until the Saharawis have had the chance to exercise their right to self-determination and have freely and fairly decided the political status of their homeland", the appeal to the Security Council writes. Read the full letter, and list of signatures, here.
In celebration of International Women's Day, yesterday 8 March 2014, the women of the Saharawi refugee camps held a protest against foreign companies that are complicit in Morocco's plunder of their occupied homeland: Western Sahara.
