The MSGBC Oil, Gas & Power 2025 conference concluded in Dakar on December 10, bringing together stakeholders from across the Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, and Cape Verde (MSGBC) basin region to assess energy milestones and chart the course for future development. The forum highlighted the region's growing profile as one of West Africa's most consequential upstream frontiers, with delegates reviewing progress across oil and gas, power infrastructure, and emerging clean energy sectors.
A central theme of the conference was regional energy milestones, reflecting the pace of development that has accelerated across the MSGBC basin in recent years. The basin has attracted significant international operator interest, and the Dakar gathering served as a platform to consolidate that momentum and coordinate among governments, operators, financiers, and service providers active in the region. The scale and calibre of participation underscored the basin's rising status on the continental energy map.
Green hydrogen featured prominently in discussions about the region's long-term energy trajectory. Delegates examined ambitions to position the MSGBC countries as potential exporters of green hydrogen, capitalising on strong solar and wind resources alongside proximity to European markets. While these plans remain in early development, their inclusion in a traditionally upstream-focused conference signals a broadening of the region's energy investment narrative beyond conventional hydrocarbons.
Expanded infrastructure was also a defining topic. Discussions covered the need for integrated infrastructure to support both production and distribution of energy across the region, including gas monetisation pathways, power connectivity, and the logistics backbone required to sustain growth. The conference framed infrastructure investment as a prerequisite for unlocking the full commercial potential of the basin's resources, and as a critical enabler for regional energy security and economic development.
The MSGBC basin continues to draw attention from international energy companies and service providers assessing West Africa opportunity sets. The conference's breadth — spanning upstream oil and gas, power infrastructure, and green hydrogen — reflects the complexity and multi-dimensional nature of the investment landscape. For companies tracking the region, the Dakar forum provides a useful barometer of where government priorities and operator strategies are aligned, and where gaps in infrastructure and capacity remain to be filled.