Shares of British oil company Rockhopper Exploration experienced a significant decline of 23% on Monday following the firm’s confirmation of its involvement and timeline in the Sea Lion offshore project, situated in the Malvinas Islands basin. The stock price experienced a 29% decline over the past month, influenced by trade sanctions imposed by Argentina, which has labelled the project as illegal, asserting sovereignty over the islands and their adjacent maritime area. The Sea Lion project is being developed in collaboration with the Israeli firm Navitas Petroleum.
Rockhopper has affirmed that the project is set to commence commercial production in the first quarter of 2028, notwithstanding the prevailing political tensions and sanctions. The British company possesses a 35% interest in the development, whereas Navitas, which is publicly traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, holds the remaining 65% stake. The consulting firm Netherland, Sewell & Associates has estimated the asset’s proven and probable reserves to be 314 million barrels. Rockhopper indicated that the initial development phase will utilise the Aoka Mizu floating production, storage, and offloading unit.
In the second phase, with the Final Investment Decision anticipated for 2028, Navitas intends to utilise the OSX-1 FPSO platform, which was acquired last August, aiming to commence commercial production by approximately 2030. Rockhopper Exploration indicated that the integration of both units would enable a production rate of as much as 180,000 barrels per day, while highlighting that a US$200 million capital increase secures its operational financing until mid-2028. The Argentine government has recently intensified its pressure on companies operating in the Malvinas Islands by introducing a bill designed to strengthen a sanctions regime established in 2011.
This regime targets companies, shareholders, and suppliers associated with projects that extract natural resources from the region. Argentina regards the actions of the United Kingdom in the Malvinas and adjacent maritime zones as illegitimate, grounded in its historical claim to sovereignty. It asserts that any entity seeking to engage in operations within this region must obtain authorisation from Argentine authorities.
