An unsteady step often precedes a seismic movement: announcing potentials that would be smoke. The departure of the Greek company based in Tel Aviv, Energean, from Morocco after a disappointing drilling campaign at the Anchois-3 well has not resulted in a retreat but a change of coordinates. This March 2026, the company, led by Mathios Rigas, has decided to execute a strategic 180-degree turn: leaving the waters of Larache behind to seek the ‘gold’ of liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the maritime border between Mauritania and Senegal. Under the strategic direction of its president, Karen Simon, and the executive leadership of Mathios Rigas, Energean is making this southern pivot backed by a solid and widely-held capital structure. The UBS Asset Management giant remains the main shareholder with 17.5%, followed by key figures in the company core such as Stathis Topouzoglou (9.47%) and Mathios Rigas himself, who controls 8.34% of the shares, while the entity Leumi Partners Ltd. holds 8.70%, ensuring the financial backbone necessary for its new foray into the deposits of Mauritania, Senegal, and Angola. After acquiring key stakes from British company Chariot in 2024 and with Moroccan state endorsement from ONHYM, Energean discovered that the Anchois deposit did not offer the expected commercial viability. Less than a year after entering Morocco, the Israeli-based Greek firm has returned the keys to the Lixus and Rissana licenses to focus its investment muscle—backed by giants like UBS Asset Management (17.5%)—on assets with more immediate cash flows. Energean’s interest now lies in the border region between Mauritania and Senegal, a node that is no longer a promise but an operational reality. The Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project, operated by BP and Kosmos Energy, made its first LNG shipment in April 2025. With a production capacity of 2.3 million tons per year in its first phase, this enclave has become the perfect magnet for companies like Energean seeking offshore resources with already established infrastructure. Rigas has been explicit in his latest statements: the company is not only exploring these border resources but is one step away from entering the oil and gas sector in Angola, through the acquisition of stakes in projects that are already in exploration and production. Everything in Morocco turned out to be a retreat that would seem like a blunder or a geological miscalculation that has left the field open for competition in the south. While expectations in Larache were deflating, the Mauritania-Senegal axis demonstrated its logistical robustness. Energean’s strategy is now to play it safe. After the Moroccan setback, the group seeks to enter projects with existing assets that guarantee immediate profitability for its shareholders, among whom are prominent names like Stathis Topouzoglou and Leumi Partners. The shifting center of gravity of exploration towards the Mauritania-Senegal axis consolidates the archipelago as the natural logistical platform for these operations. If gas is moving south, the ports of the Canaries reinforce their role as repair and resupply bases for an industry that has decided that the future of the African Atlantic is being written away from the Moroccan coasts. The dream of Moroccan gas lasted barely twelve months, but the African ambition of the Greek firm seems just to be beginning, now with the course set towards the deep waters of Senegal and the operational maturity of Angola.
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