Turkey’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, announced on Friday that the oil exploration vessel Oruc Reis has completed 50% of its seismic survey in Somalia’s offshore waters. This effort is part of an ongoing search for oil and natural gas deposits in Somali waters.

The vessel, which docked at Mogadishu port in October, has been conducting 3D seismic studies to gather crucial data over several months. Somalia had previously announced that the survey would be concluded by June 2025. The collected data will be analyzed in Ankara to determine the most suitable locations for drilling oil and natural gas.

Minister Bayraktar shared this update after a meeting in Istanbul with Somalia’s newly appointed Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Dahir Shire Mohamed, and his delegation. The discussions focused on the next phase of exploration and potential new collaborations onshore in Somalia. The Turkish minister reiterated their commitment to strengthening energy and mining cooperation between the two nations.

“We continue our efforts to enhance energy and mining cooperation to reach a level befitting the close relations and brotherhood between our countries,” Bayraktar stated on his X account.

Additionally, the Turkish minister announced the launch of a new cooperation initiative in the mining sector, further boosting Somalia-Turkey relations in the field of natural resources.

Somalia previously declared that by April 2025, the two ongoing exploration phases would be completed. Subsequently, a 3D seismic survey in Hobyo will commence, accelerating efforts to identify the most promising drilling sites before the seasonal closure of offshore operations.

The Oruc Reis is one of six advanced research vessels worldwide specializing in oil exploration. It is equipped with state-of-the-art remote-controlled technology and conducts various scientific studies, including oil and gas exploration, seabed monitoring, earthquake research, undersea cable assessments, pollution detection, and climate change analysis.