TotalEnergies Explores Proven Atlantic Play as Liberia Reopens Deepwater Drilling

Following a lull of over ten years, offshore oil exploration in Liberia is regaining momentum as TotalEnergies secures a major position in the Liberia Basin and moves forward with a reconnaissance initiative in the mostly unexplored Harper Basin.

The energy major secured Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs) in September 2025 across Blocks LB-6, LB-11, LB-17, and LB-29, spanning approximately 12,700 square kilometers. Following legislative ratification in December, these marked the country’s first significant offshore oil deals in over a decade. The four blocks generated a combined $16 million signature bonus, with TotalEnergies planning investments of roughly $200 million per block.

For 2026, the operator is focusing on reducing geological risk prior to drilling. TotalEnergies is executing seabed surveys, geochemical testing, and seismic data acquisition across the area to further evaluate a petroleum system identified during earlier exploration that was never commercially developed.

Previous efforts laid key groundwork. In 2011, the Montserrado-1 well in Block LB-15 hit about eight meters of hydrocarbon pay and recovered light crude, verifying an active hydrocarbon system despite being labeled non-commercial. Earlier surveys also pointed to Cretaceous formations comparable to the Jubilee field in Ghana.

Updated seismic processing is now re-evaluating these structures. According to the LPRA, over 5,100 square kilometers of 3D seismic data from the Liberia Basin has undergone pre-stack depth migration, enhancing the resolution of Cretaceous targets. Modeling of the basin highlights active hydrocarbon generation and potential stacked Late Cretaceous slope-channel networks.

The Harper Basin offers an earlier-stage, similar prospect. TotalEnergies retains a 65% stake alongside BluEnergies under a reconnaissance license for Blocks LB-26, LB-30, and LB-31. The partnership is reprocessing 6,167 square kilometers of 2013 3D seismic data while carrying out a 4,045-square-kilometer seabed survey involving heat-flow tests and geochemical sampling.

Situated on the West African Transform Margin, Liberia shares geological features with major Upper Cretaceous turbidite and basin-floor fan discoveries in Ghana and Ivory Coast. Across the ocean, Guyana’s Stabroek Basin along the conjugate South American margin demonstrates the potential scale of transform-margin petroleum systems.

Liberia has also modernized its licensing process, adopting a hybrid direct negotiation framework rather than traditional open-door negotiating or standard competitive bidding. Each licensing wave will be structured around current market conditions and national priorities. Revisions to the petroleum law and the updated model PSC offer greater clarity for investors. Under the new PSC structure, operators may allocate up to 70% of net-of-royalty production toward cost recovery, splitting remaining output with the state based on the contractor’s nominal pre-tax internal rate of return.

For TotalEnergies, the strategy focuses on securing frontier positions before commercial discovery elevates market valuation. The company views these Liberian assets as a route to expand its exploration portfolio in promising, oil-prone basins where deepwater capabilities can be leveraged for large-scale, lower-emissions developments.

The impact reaches beyond a single company. TotalEnergies’ presence establishes a high-profile operator with the capital required for modern deepwater exploration, anchoring interest from global investors. Before any commercial discovery is announced, the government has earned at least $27 million in signature bonuses from recent deals with TotalEnergies and Oranto.

The primary hurdle now shifts from legal structures to subsurface geology—specifically, whether advanced imaging can transform verified hydrocarbon indicators into commercial assets. If successful, Liberia’s long offshore pause may mark the beginning of a far broader exploration cycle.

The Launch of the Liberia 2026 Offshore Direct Negotiation Licensing Round – organized by Energy Capital and Power – will take place at African Energy Week (AEW) 2026 on October 14 at The Orchid, CTICC 2. Visit, https://lpra.gov.lr/liberia-2026-licensing-round/#enq for more information.