"Somalia will start producing oil on its territory for the first time in history later this year," said Somali Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Abdirizak Omar Mohamed, Azernews reports, citing TACC.

The first oil is expected to be extracted from fields in Galmudug, Southwest and Jubaland states. In October 2022, Somalia signed an agreement to develop oil reserves with US-based Coastline Exploration.

The agreement, based on a production sharing principle, grants Coastline Exploration the right to explore for oil in seven blocks. Geoseismic studies have shown that Somalia has potential oil and natural gas reserves equivalent to 30 billion barrels.