On November 20, 2025, members of the Liberian Senate intensified their scrutiny of the federal government’s offshore oil exploration agreements with Atlas Oranto Petroleum and TotalEnergies.
By Lincoln G. Peters
Monrovia, November 24, 2025: Members of the Liberian Senate have demanded the unique signed copies of the offshore oil agreements between the federal government of Liberia, Atals Oranto Petroleum, and French-based oil large TotalEnergies.
Each offshore agreements are at the moment awaiting Senate approval and canopy 4 blocks for every firm.
Senators expressed concern after discovering that the paperwork introduced to them had been unsigned and contained varied discrepancies.
Maryland County Senator J. Gbleh-bo Brown was notably vocal, questioning representatives from the federal government, together with the Ministries of Justice, Finance and Growth Planning, and Mines and Vitality, the Liberia Income Authority, the Liberia Nationwide Oil Firm, and the Liberia Petroleum Regulatory Authority.
Sen. Brown highlighted the procedural significance of getting signed agreements: “Usually, when they’re signed, they’re signed by the sector’s Ministries or businesses and the President, whereas the concessionary can also be signed earlier than it involves the legislature. Now, are you saying all of those steps have been taken?” he queried.
Cllr. N. Oswald Tweah, representing the Ministry of Justice, confirmed that the agreements had been signed in Paris, France, throughout a presidential go to.
He acknowledged, “Senator, the Atlas Oranto and TotalEnergies agreements had been signed in Paris, France, throughout the president’s go to. I attended the signing ceremony and acted as a proxy for my boss.” Nevertheless, he couldn’t affirm whether or not the President himself had signed the agreements, including to senators’ considerations.
Following this response, Sen. Brown moved that the Senate committee formally petition for the unique signed copies of the agreements. He asserted, “I need to place this on report that what now we have in our palms usually are not the signed copies. To be adequately knowledgeable and within the place to vote for these concessions, I would like the signed copies to be submitted to the legislature earlier than our ultimate votes.”
Bomi County Senator and Committee Chair, Edwin Melvin Snowe, acknowledged the gravity of the senators’ considerations, describing the state of affairs as “troubling and grave.”
The failure to offer signed agreements was not the one difficulty highlighted throughout the listening to. Different important considerations included:
•Clarification on Firm Presence: The federal government did not make clear the institution and presence of Atlas Oranto’s native subsidiary, Oranto Liberia Restricted.
•Oil Block Places: There was an absence of readability on the precise areas of the oil blocks, with preliminary mentions of Maryland, Rivercess, and Sinoe counties proving inadequate.
•Financial Advantages: Senators questioned the financial benefits for Liberia, notably for the reason that settlement grants the businesses unique rights to promote oil.
•Monetary Standing and Operator Modifications: The federal government didn’t present a complete monetary standing of Oranto’s earlier operations in Liberia.
Moreover, the settlement reportedly permits the operators to alter inside a ten-year interval and promote to any group, elevating additional questions on oversight and stability. -Edited by Othello B. Garblah.
