The government is set to open bidding for 10 exploration blocks in Kenya's first licensing round since enacting a new laws governing petroleum legislation six years ago.
In an announcement on September 1, the Ministry of Petroleum revealed that the blocks, which are located in the Anza and Lamu basins, were selected based on geoscientific data to ensure transparency.
Kenya holds at least 50 blocks across four sedimentary basins, with Principal Secretary for petroleum Mohamed Liban confirming that 10 were ready for marketing.
“This offering represents a new era in petroleum exploration, aligning Kenya with global standards,” Liban said.
Notably, Kenya's petroleum exploration blocks were recently restructured to feature flexible Production Sharing contract terms and a package of tax incentives.
Joseph Otieno, the Petroleum Commissioner further stated that the licensing reflected the government's efforts to attract international investors by eliminating barriers and improving access to data about the exploration blocks..
During the 2025 East African Petroleum Conference in Dar es Salaam, Energy Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi also revealed the government was expanding infrastructure to support more exploration and production of oil.
While Kenya has immense potential to become an oil-producing superpower, projects have stalled over the years due to several different factors. A project in South Lokichar, for instance, stalled after UK-based explorer Tullow Oil failed to secure financing partners.
This was after TotalEnergies and Canada’s Africa Oil Corp. withdrew from the project two years ago, leaving Tullow the sole operator.
In July, Tullow Oil finally reached an agreement to sell its entire business interests in Kenya, officially marking its exit from the Kenyan market after over a decade of exploration work in the South Lokichar Basin.
The company's exit from Kenya can be attributed to the Ksh19 million loss it incurred during its operations in Kenya. since becoming the sole owner of the Lokichar oilfield since 2023.
The transaction was heavily contingent upon the completion of a Field Development Plan (FDP), which outlines how oil will be extracted, transported and marketed from Turkana's oil-rich Lokichar Basin.
Tullow Oil and its local partner, Gulf Energy Ltd were in July, granted an additional six months to submit the FDP, which is a key requirement for the project to move into the production phase.
