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Somalia’s Curad-1 offshore well targets a major new oil find

TPAO started drilling the Curad-1 well in Block 153 in April 2026, with total depth expected near 7,500 metres.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Energy

Somalia could become a new frontier for offshore oil exploration as TPAO drills the Curad-1 exploration well across offshore blocks in the Arabian Sea, OilPrice reported. The project is positioned as an alternative to supply routes that rely on the Strait of Hormuz, if results prove successful.

OilPrice said the well was appraised after Oruc Reis collected 4,464 square kilometres of 3D seismic data across Blocks 142, 152, and 153 from October 2024 through June 2025. Early results from Blocks 152 and 153 were described as encouraging, and TPAO began spudding the Curad-1 well in Block 153 in April 2026 using its own drillship.

Curad-1 is located about 372 kilometres northeast of Mogadishu in roughly 3,500 metres of water, and it is expected to reach a total depth around 7,500 metres. The drilling program could take up to 288 days, and the outlet said the effort would make it one of the deepest offshore exploration wells ever attempted.

OilPrice noted Somalia’s offshore remains largely unexplored, with only eight wells drilled historically, including two in the Somali Basin, and no commercial discovery to date. The article added that the country’s recently revamped fiscal terms are designed to reflect that risk, citing the 2020 model PSA framework for production sharing.

According to the report, the 2020 model PSA includes provisions under which companies may re

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