SPH has been awarded two onshore petroleum exploration licences in the Republic of Mali in the highly sought after Taoudeni Basin and the Gao Graben (Niger, Chad, Sudan).

The two permits - Block 8 and Block 10 - cover an area of 39,000 and 25,300 square kilometres respectively. Repsol, Woodside, Total and the China National Petroleum Company each hold two blocks in the Taoudeni Basin in Mauritania.

Max De Vietri, who was the initial deal broker for the permits eventually picked up by Hardman and then Woodside, has also been awarded two blocks in Mauritania and five blocks in Mali through his company Baraka.

“We applied for onshore applications late last year and these are the first two licenses to be awarded,” Sphere’s managing director, Alexander Burns, said today.

"It's been a long time coming," he told EnergyReview.net

The blocks were awarded to a 95%-owned Mali subsidiary of Sphere, Mali Petroleum S.A, by His Excellency Mr Semega the Minister of Mines, Energy and Water for Mali.

The Production Sharing Contracts are now being finalised with the Ministry to set out the work programs for each block and other fiscal and legal terms and conditions.

Sphere this week announced the go-ahead for Stage Two of the feasibility study on its flagship Guelb el Aouj iron ore project in neighbouring Mauritania.

The go-ahead includes the commencement this month of a 10,000 metre drilling program to develop an Inferred Resource at a second Guelb el Aouj deposit ahead of a planned decision by October on which of the ore bodies will be mined first.

“The award of the oil and gas permits is in keeping with the company’s objective to develop a West African resources portfolio with strategic partners,” Burns said.