Australian oil company Woodside announced<\/a> in June that it had extracted the first oil from the deepwater Sangomar field, which sits around 100 kilometres south of Dakar and is the country\u2019s first offshore oil project. Its CEO Meg O\u2019Neill called it \u201can historic day for Senegal\u201d and her company. The ship<\/a> sent to harvest oil from Sangomar is named in honour of the country\u2019s first president, L\u00e9opold S\u00e9dar Senghor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some are less happy, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mor Mbengue, a fisher based in the important fishing port of Kayar, just north of Dakar, told Dialogue Earth he had concerns over the future of artisanal fishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe are afraid of a negative impact with the decrease in fishing areas but also the risks of gas or oil leakage,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The situation in the Niger Delta serves as a cautionary tale. There, initial hopes of economic improvement through oil have been overshadowed by conflict over money and pollution<\/a> from spills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ademola Henry Adigun, an oil and gas governance consultant based in Nigeria, says fossil fuel production can enhance a nation\u2019s economy but will cause harm if not conducted responsibly. Poor management and lack of enforcement of regulations have led to oil spills in Africa in the past, he notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt takes an average of 25 years to clean an oil spill and 15 years for the environment to be back to normal [in the Niger Delta region],\u201d he says. \u201cThis all happens because people don\u2019t pay attention to maintenance and core standards of operation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Woodside spokesperson says the Sangomar project is \u201cworld-class\u201d and \u201ca circa USD 5 billion investment in Senegal\u2019s energy future\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They point out that the company has conducted an environmental and social impact assessment which was approved by Senegal\u2019s government in 2019. This, the spokesperson says, \u201cis underpinned by a comprehensive understanding of the marine and socio-economic environment\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They add that \u201cthere will be appropriate mitigation measures adopted with the aim to minimise any impact on the environment and local communities\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Woodside\u2019s assessment<\/a> specifies the company will ensure it has \u201ca minimal impact\u201d on fisheries. It also says spills are not predicted, although \u201cthere is an inherent risk of spills occurring\u201d. The operation \u201cwill implement stringent industry standards and controls\u201d to reduce that risk, and \u201cappropriate management measures to prevent spills of any nature have been identified\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before the \u201chistoric\u201d oil drilling by Woodside, other companies were already exploring for gas off the northern coast of Senegal. There, a joint project<\/a> between Kosmos and BP and the national oil companies of Mauritania and Senegal hopes to start producing liquified natural gas later this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fishers in these waters claim the project has brought additional problems to their community, which was already hard hit by pressure from industrial fishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Saint Louis, a northern city near the border with Mauritania, some fishers say the intrusion of large ships into their fishing grounds has led to their nets being damaged, causing financial losses, although it is difficult to assign such damage to particular vessels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lamine Diop, whose family has a long tradition of fishing in the region, says fishers are struggling, as nets are very expensive in Senegal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe were hopeful at first, thinking it [the arrival of oil companies] would end our poverty,\u201d he says, adding that he believed the companies would bring revenue and create jobs for the area\u2019s young people. But because of the damage to fishing equipment and disruption, their presence has meant \u201cwe are suffering more than before\u201d, he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thomas Golembeski, a spokesperson for Kosmos, says his company has engaged closely with local fishers and funded projects including healthcare, schools and micro-finance for fishers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He adds that the pressures felt by the fishing community in the Saint Louis region pre-date the discovery of natural gas and Kosmos and BP\u2019s Greater Tortue Ahmeyim<\/a> offshore gas project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOverfishing by foreign industrial trawlers, an influx of foreign-owned fishmeal factories, and licensing requirements to access historic fishing areas in Mauritanian waters are all well-documented issues,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A BP spokesperson said that \u201cengaging with and supporting local communities\u201d has been important throughout its work on the Senegal gas project. They said the company and its partners have launched a \u201cmulti-million-dollar, wide ranging, social investment programme\u201d which has included support for fishing communities such as developing alternative income sources and education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They added that the project\u2019s environmental and social impact assessment had been approved by governments and regulators in both Mauritania and Senegal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Woodside stresses that it neither operates nor conducts any activities near Saint Louis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though Senegal\u2019s domestic gas could eventually supply local markets and potentially replace expensive imports of oil, questions remain over who will ultimately profit from the country\u2019s current fossil fuel projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After taking office in April, Senegalese president Bassirou Diomaye Faye announced an audit of the oil, gas and mining sectors, but reassured<\/a> fossil fuel investors they are welcome in the country. Other politicians and industry figures have touted economic benefits, and Woodside says it has already spent some USD 177 million with local suppliers and created 4,400 local jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the oil and gas itself has largely been earmarked<\/a> for export. After breaking ties with Russia, many western countries have turned<\/a> to African countries with gas and oil potential like Senegal for their energy needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfrican countries mainly produce gas and oil for Western nations, to the detriment of their citizens, who receive limited benefits from the revenue,\u201d says Amos Wemanya, a climate and energy activist based in Nairobi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Australian-headquartered Woodside has an 82%<\/a> interest in the Sangomar field, with state-owned Petrosen holding the remaining 18%. Other parts of the drilling area are divided 90\/10 in favour of the former.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis project illustrates the disproportionate control foreign entities have over Senegal\u2019s natural resources,\u201d says Wafa Misrar, an environmental chemist and policy officer at Climate Action Network Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prime minister Ousmane Sonko recently announced<\/a> the establishment of a commission to review Senegal\u2019s oil and gas contracts, and promised to \u201cre-examine them and work to rebalance them, obviously in the national interest\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Energy policy in Africa is at a critical juncture amid tension between climate challenges and the urgent need for both economic transformation and a solution its energy crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Climate change brings multiple threats<\/a> to Senegal including sea level rise in its low lying and highly populated coastal regions, droughts damaging agriculture and negative changes to fisheries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n More than three quarters<\/a> of the 774 million<\/a> people living without access to electricity globally are in Africa. In Senegal, only 68% of the population have access to electricity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, the African population is expected to grow from 1.5 billion today to 2.5 billion by 2050. With increasing incomes and urbanisation, energy demand is only going to soar<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many have pinned their hopes on homegrown fossil fuel supplies as a way to deal with this crisis. Some also argue that, given the continent\u2019s miniscule contribution to global emissions, African countries have a right to utilise their fossil fuel resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFishers fear repeat of the past<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Senegal\u2019s fossil fuels, Europe\u2019s gain?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Bass\u00edrou](\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Bassirou-Diomaye-Diakhar-Faye_Alamy_2Y6GHMF-2.jpg\")
<\/div>To drill or not to drill?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n