Somalia/Kenya Maritime Dispute Heating Up

The dispute between Somalia and Kenya over the maritime boundary between the two countries is heating up as Kenya continues to award more acreage and exploration programs move closer to take off. The government in Somalia says that the awards made by Kenya to ENI and Total are illegal because they lie in waters claimed by Somalia.

Somalia's deputy energy minister, Abdullahi Dool told Reuters that the contracts awarded for four blocks in deep waters are invalid and the government planned to complain to the UN, which oversees maritime border laws. “We are concerned about the lease of blocks,” Dool was quoted as saying. “I am sure we will lodge complaints.”

The Kenyan government disagrees with its petroleum commissioner Martin Heya, telling Reuters “Saying these are not Kenyan blocks is like saying we don't have a full-fledged government, like we are a banana republic.”

Kenya’s position is that the maritime boundary, over which there is no formal agreement, should run due east from the point at which the land border meets the coast, like the maritime boundaries of other countries along the coast. While Somalia says the boundary should extend perpendicular to the coastline, giving it a big chunk of the waters claimed by Kenya.