Oil and natural gas in morocco

 Energy in Morocco is characterized by an important dependency from abroad. Morocco expects its primary national energy needs to increase to 17 millions TOE by the year 2010.The Moroccan Office of Hydrocarbons and Mining (ONHYM) has become optimistic about finding additional reserves – particularly offshore – following discoveries in neighboring Mauritania. At the end of 2005, 19 foreign companies were operating in Morocco, with an estimated total investment of $56 million per year. In May 2004, China Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) received a license to drill near Agadir. In April 2004, Norway's Norsk Hydro signed a 12-month exploration contract for the Safi Offshore Northwest zone, while Denmark's Maersk signed an eight-year agreement for eight blocks near Tarfaya. In March 2004, Calgary-based Stratic Energy committed to a three-year exploration program in two onshore blocks in northwest Morocco. The two concessions cover approximately 1,544 square miles (4,000 km²). Other foreign firms engaged in exploration include Petronas, Cooper Energy NL, Shell, Total, and Tullow Oil.

Morocco produces small volumes of oil and natural gas from the Essaouira Basin and small amounts of natural gas from the Gharb Basin. Consequently, Morocco is the largest energy importer in northern Africa. The country’s total yearly costs for energy imports range from $1- $1.5 billion. However, high oil prices in 2005 increased import costs to approximately $2 billion for the year. In 2003, the Moroccan government announced that foreign companies could import oil without paying import tariffs. This followed a 2000 decision, in which, Morocco modified its hydrocarbons law in order to offer a 10-year tax break to offshore oil production firms, and to reduce the government's stake in future oil concessions to a maximum of 25 percent. The entire energy sector was due to be liberalized by 2007.ONAREP, the Moroccan National oil company, was created in 1981 with a mandate to serve as an instrument of the State oil exploration and production (E&P) policy.

Both Premier Oil and Sterling Energy received conditional exploration rights. Foreign companies operating under Moroccan concession in Western Sahara have become targets of international protest campaigns. These companies include Total, Wessex Exploration, Svitzer (the British subsidiary of the Dutch company Fugro),Recent activity in Western Sahara, which is believed to contain viable hydrocarbon reserves, has been controversial. In 2001, Morocco granted exploration contracts to Total and Kerr-McGee, angering Premier Oil and Sterling Energy, which previously had obtained licenses from the Polisario government. In 2005, the government-in-exile of the Western Sahara invited foreign companies to bid on 12 contracts for offshore exploration, with hopes of awarding production sharing contracts by the end of 2005.  Wales' Robertson Research International and Norway's TGS Nopec. All have ended their operations in Western Sahara, with the exception of Kerr-McGee. As of November 2005, the company was the last to be drilling in Western Sahara, although the Polisario government has pressured it to pull out.

Morocco has exploration and production industry. Major seaports, roads, airports, a substantial infrastructure to support an active oil and gas pipelines and refineries are near large cities endowed with European and North American style amenities. Oil refineries located at Sidi Kacem and at Mohammedia near Casablanca have a capacity of 7.45 millions tons/year,and Morocco is a transit center for Algerian gas exports to Spain and Portugal. These are transported across the Strait of Gibraltar via the 300–350 Bcf/year Maghreb-Europe Gas (MEG) pipeline. Natural gas from the MEG pipeline will be used to power Morocco's power project in Al Wahda.

Energy Africa has interests in two offshore permits in the Tarfaya Basin - Cap Draa (10%) and Tiznit (32%) in Morocco. The Rak-1 well in the Cap Draa licence was plugged and abandoned in July 2004 having failed to encounter hydrocarbons.

In February 2004 Vanco Morocco Ltd. signed a participation agreement with ENI Morocco B.V. to commence drilling of its first deepwater well in its Ras Tafelney exploration permit offshore Morocco. Under the terms of the agreement, ENI will provide the state-of-the-art Saipem 10,000 drillship to drill one of several 3D seismic identified prospects. The Ras Tafelney partnership comprises Vanco Morocco Ltd., as Operator -- 45%, ENI Morocco B.V. -- 30%, and ONAREP -- 25%. In May of the same year the Group commenced operations on the exploration well Shark B-1 located approximately 130 kilometers off the coast of Morocco in 2,120 meters of water.

In May 2005 Vanco Morocco Ltd. announced the commencement of a 700 square kilometer 3-D seismic acquisition program offshore Morocco over the deepwater Safi Haute Mer Permit. This permit is held under a Petroleum Agreement signed with the Government of Morocco on 24 October 2000 and has an area of over 5 million acres.

In April 2004 Norwegian energy and metals group Norsk Hydro formed a partnership with the national Moroccan oil company ONAREP and signed a contract to collect seismic data offshore Morocco and investigate prospects for drilling for oil.

May 2004 China Offshore Oil Corporation obtained an offshore oil drilling licence in Morocco's Ras Tafeiney, on the southern Atlantic shore, near Agadir.May 2005 Dana Petroleum acquired the rights of Global Resource Holdings, LLLP in respect of a 35% interest in a Reconnaissance Contract covering the NW Safi area offshore the Atlantic coast of Morocco. The contract covers a large area spanning 6,645 square kilometres with water depths ranging from 300 to 3,000 metres. The remaining 65% interest in the Reconnaissance Contract, originally awarded in April 2004, is held by the operator, Norsk Hydro.May 2005 Baraka Petroleum Limited entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with ONAREP to examine the Cap Juby offshore petroleum tenement. Historical evaluation of the Cap Juby offshore tenement has shown heavy oil accumulations to be present within the tenement. As part of The Cap Juby MOU, Baraka has the exclusive right, for a period of 6-months, to evaluate the field, and review substantial data held by ONAREP and if appropriate negotiate an exclusive exploration and development concession over all or part of the tenement area.