Falklands Plateau

Commentary

While Rockhopper has proved the commerciality of Sea Lion, the development remains in stasis as the project completes for attention with the partners' portfolios. Nevertheless, Sea Lion's FID will act as a catalyst for the whole region.

Updated

August 23, 2023

Location

Description

The paleogeographic reconstruction of the Falkland Plateau transform margin in a Gondwana pre-break-up configuration has been the subject of debate for years. This is mainly due to the uncertainty in the position of the Falkland Islands microplate. The islands were an extension of the south-east coast of South Africa, being either i) part of a rigid Falkland Plateau fixed to the South American plate or ii) undergoing a vertical-axis clockwise rotation of between 80° to 120° along the transform faults generated during the initial stages of fragmentation of south-western Gondwana.

Summary

Exploration and development in the basin has been exceptionally long dated, beginning in 1998. However, Sea Lion should see an acceleration in interest.