Sierra Leone launches bid round as West African exploration revives

The Petroleum Directorate of Sierra Leone (PDSL) launched the country’s fourth offshore licensing round in London on 25 January, hoping to capitalise on recent oil and gas discoveries in Senegal and Ghana. Data rooms have opened in Freetown and the UK, with the support of Henley-based ERCL. Interested companies must first prequalify to submit a bid, and bids are due by noon on 28 June.PDSL director-general Raymond Kargbo told the launch event existing seismic showed Sierra Leone had the same geological structures found in Senegal and Ghana’s Jubilee field, and he was confident that Sierra Leone would become a hydrocarbons producer.