Senegal has revoked offshore oil exploration rights previously granted to Atlas Oranto Petroleum, the privately held oil and gas company founded by Nigerian billionaire Arthur Eze, signaling a tougher regulatory approach toward inactive petroleum licenses.
According to Business Insider, the move aligns with Senegal’s broader effort to tighten oversight of its energy sector and fast-track the commercial development of its hydrocarbon resources.
The decision followed Atlas Oranto’s failure to meet key financial and operational conditions tied to the license. Authorities withdrew the Cayar Offshore Shallow exploration permit after determining that the company did not submit the required bank guarantees and conducted only minimal exploration activities since the block was awarded in 2008, despite multiple deadline extensions.
The offshore acreage, covering roughly 3,600 square kilometers north of the Dakar peninsula, is considered oil-prospective but remains largely unexplored. Although seismic surveys identified several potential prospects, no exploratory drilling was carried out during the entire license period.
Under the supervision of Energy and Petroleum Minister Birame Souleye Diop, the ministry formally terminated the license in September 2025, citing repeated non-compliance with contractual and financial obligations. Industry sources confirmed in early 2026 that there had been little to no significant seismic or drilling work on the block.
Senegal has since repossessed the acreage, describing the action as part of President Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s administration’s wider push to enforce compliance and apply stricter standards to petroleum license holders.
The revocation places Senegal among a growing number of African oil-producing nations reviewing legacy exploration agreements from earlier licensing rounds. Governments across the continent are increasingly insisting that oil and gas rights translate into real investment, drilling, and production, rather than being held for speculative purposes.
The development has also drawn renewed attention to Atlas Oranto’s operations elsewhere in the region. In Liberia, the company secured four offshore production-sharing contracts in September 2025 for Blocks LB-15, LB-16, LB-22, and LB-24 in the Liberian Basin. The agreements reportedly included a signature bonus of between $12 million and $15 million, with proposed investments exceeding $200 million per block.
While Liberian authorities described the deals as part of efforts to revive a petroleum sector that has seen little activity for over a decade, Atlas Oranto had not issued an official response to Senegal’s decision as of the time of this report.