Somaliland authorities in northern Somalia have inked energy and mineral resources cooperation agreement with Taiwan this week.
In a statement, Taiwan diplomatic office said the agreement was signed by Economic Affairs Minister Wang Mei-hua in Taipei and Somaliland Energy and Minerals Minister Abdilahi Farah Abdi in Somaliland at different times on Monday.
Taiwan’s representative to Somaliland, Allen Lou, witnessed Abdi’s signing of the agreement at a ceremony held at Somaliland’s Ministry of Energy and Minerals, according to the representative office.
The pact is aimed at establishing a solid legal foundation for bilateral energy and mineral resources cooperation, and a task force will be formed to facilitate information sharing, exploration and drilling, capacity building and training, the office said.
“On the road to energy independence, Taiwan and Somaliland will walk side by side,” the office said.
During the ceremony, Abdi thanked Taiwan’s government for its support, saying the agreement covered sectors important to Somaliland’s development
In December 2021, Taiwan’s CPC Corp. signed a farm-out agreement with U.K.-based Genel Energy to acquire 49 percent of the rights to explore the hydrocarbon resources in the SL10B/13 mining area, and the deal was later approved by the Somaliland government.
