Liberia

Investment & Operational Criteria

Key Indicators

Risk Premia

3.125

%

Outlook

Neutral

Rating

CCC|3H|±

Ranking

67

Reserves (1P)

Total

mm boe

Oil

0

%

Summary

Regular outbreaks of Ebola has hampered progress in the country, which has been hampered yet further by concerns over the ruling party's fitness to govern. Nevertheless, there are signs that the future might be improving, hence we have upgraded out outlook to Neutral.

Updated

April 5, 2024

Country Basics

Region

Africa - West

Reserves (1P)

Oil

mm bbl

Gas

bcf

Location

LiberiaLiberia

Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone.

Outline

Tax Regime
Type

PSC/PSA

Tax Regime
Notes

Relatively simple Production Sharing Contract ("PSC")-based fiscal regime, based on a model contract introduced in 2004. There are no signature bonuses, but the contractor must pay a fee into a Hydrocarbon Development Fund. There are typically no royalties. Cost recovery is negotiable, whilst production splits vary on a sliding scale with production rates. The contractor is also liable for income tax, but this may be paid on its behalf by the NOC.

Investment & 
Operational
Climate

Liberia offers opportunities for investment, especially in natural resources such as mining, agriculture, fishing, and forestry, but also in more specialized sectors such as energy, telecommunications, agribusiness, tourism, and financial services. The economy, which was severely damaged by more than a decade of civil wars that ended in 2003, has been slowly recovering, but Liberia has yet to attain pre-war levels of development, and corrupt misgovernance continues to hinder growth, investment, and job creation. Liberia’s largely commodities-based economy relies heavily on imports even for most basic needs like fuel, clothing, and rice – Liberia’s most important staple food. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted many sectors of the economy, which contracted in 2019 and 2020. However, the World Bank and IMF expect per capita GDP to return to pre-COVID-19 levels by 2023. Most of Liberia lacks power supply, though efforts to expand access to electricity are ongoing through development of a grid from the Mount Coffee Hydropower Plant, the West Africa Power Pool’s cross border electrification projects, and other internationally supported energy projects.

Source: ESRI, Heritage Index, HMG Foreign & Commonwealth Office, US Department of State, International Trade Administration, International Law Review, Ernst & Young, Wood Makenzie & OGA data.

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