Spanish-Moroccan maritime negotiations unfold near the Canary Islands
Morocco continues its offshore push for hydrocarbons, reaching toward the Atlantic margins off Lanzarote and Fuerteventura while engaging in boundary discussions with Spain over the territorial sea. The moves take place as negotiations open to clearly define maritime limits between the two nations for the first time in writing.
Amina Benkhadra, executive director of the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mining, appeared before a Rabat committee focused on infrastructure, energy, mining and the environment to discuss recent developments in the gas sector under Moroccan leadership. The ENI-led consortium, which includes Qatar Petroleum International Upstream and the Moroccan state company Onhym, has signaled plans to drill two wells in the Tarfaya Offshore region, located in the far west of the area near the Canary Islands. The operation covers a shallow grid network that coordinates the drilling work.
The drilling site lies opposite Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, along the coast between Agadir and Western Sahara, in what is known as the Tarfaya Offshore Shallow block.
News from November of the previous year indicated that Morocco’s National Hydrocarbon and Mining Department granted permission to explore the Atlantic coast from the open sea in the Tarfaya Offshore Shallow area, spanning between the Agadir region and Western Sahara. This decision drew broad social and institutional concern on the islands, where many residents have long argued for disciplined development of waters near theCanary Islands, where the maritime boundary remains unsettled.
Repsol explored similar concessions seven years earlier, focusing on natural gas; however, the volume found did not support a full commercial cycle. Earlier surveys indicated limited opposition to Tarfaya across the archipelago, especially in Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, the islands closest to the drilling area.
Approval of the Tarfaya wells came from the director general of the National Hydrocarbon Office amid a delicate moment in island politics. The situation followed Spain’s evolving international stance on Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara, which stirred unrest among the archipelago’s political partners. The socialist president faced pressure from allies and parliamentary groups, including regional factions, as he navigated the evolving regional diplomacy.
In the context of this debate, a Spanish-Moroccan commission is tasked with delimiting territorial waters. The focus is on establishing a median line that would balance Moroccan and Canarian waters, a critical step in the broader negotiations over maritime boundaries in the Atlantic front.
Morocco has sought to extend its exclusive economic zone and its continental shelf, expanding its claims into waters near the Canary Islands. Spain has responded with caution, emphasizing the need to manage the process through formal agreements. The dispute centers on hydrocarbon potential, as well as other valuable minerals and resources that could influence future green technologies and energy policies in North Africa and Europe. The ongoing dialogue aims to avoid unilateral action and find a shared framework for maritime delimitation.
The Tarfaya Offshore Shallow area comprises twelve blocks located opposite the Moroccan towns of Sidi Ifni, Tan Tan and Tarfaya. Survey permits cover roughly 23,900 square kilometers from the surface to depths of 1,000 meters. This region sits in the southern zone of the former Spanish protectorate and is historically linked to earlier routes of political movement in the area. The region has long been a focal point for energy exploration and regional policy development.
Since the turn of the century, hydrocarbon exploration has been active in Morocco and neighboring countries. A series of drilling programs have identified several oil and gas indicators along the Atlantic coast, from Agadir to Tarfaya. Over the years, multiple wells have confirmed oil and gas presence off Tarfaya and Sidi Ifni, with additional wells highlighting potential reserves in adjacent offshore zones. These findings continue to shape regional energy strategies and cross-border negotiations with adjacent jurisdictions, underscoring the strategic importance of the Atlantic margin for future energy supply and regional economic planning.