A Turkish deep-water drilling vessel has arrived off Somalia’s capital, marking the start of the country’s first-ever offshore oil exploration campaign.
The drillship Çağrı Bey was received at Mogadishu port on Friday in a ceremony attended by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, and other senior officials. The event signalled a major step forward under a bilateral energy pact signed between Somalia and Turkey in 2024.
President Mohamud described the vessel’s arrival as a national turning point. “This is a milestone that will drive economic growth, attract investment, and create new jobs,” he said. He pledged that any oil revenues would be channelled into social services, infrastructure, and long-term stability and thanked Turkey for its continued support in Somalia’s reconstruction.
Turkey’s energy minister, Alparslan Bayraktar, called the project “a new era in Turkish petroleum exploration”. He noted that the planned well would reach 7,500 metres – among the deepest offshore drilling operations attempted worldwide. The drilling campaign is expected to take about ten months.
Somalia’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Dahir Shire Mohamed, said the day was historic.
“Welcoming the Turkish ship to drill for oil brings new hope and is a positive step toward using our natural resources,” he stated.
Previous Turkish seismic surveys had already identified several offshore blocks with promising hydrocarbon potential. Authorities stress that resources will be managed transparently to benefit the Somali people.