Description

In 1921, reports of oil seepages in Yemen caught the attention of the British Petroleum Department, sparking interest in potential oil reserves. While the focus of the oil industry was elsewhere in the Middle East, notable figures like Frank Holmes explored oil prospects in the Farasan Islands and the Salif salt mines.

By the 1960s and 70s, advancements in geological understanding revealed deep rift-related Jurassic basins, believed to be linked to the breakup of the Gondwana supercontinent. These basins showed favorable conditions for oil source rock development, with hydrocarbons migrating into accessible reservoirs. Tertiary rifts in the Gulf of Suez also garnered attention.

Following the departure of IPC, commercial drilling commenced in 1961, with the Mecom group drilling dry holes on the Red Sea shore. Shell followed suit between 1976 and 1980. Pan American (Amoco) drilled unsuccessfully in the Aden Protectorate in 1964, while Algerian and Russian groups showed interest, with promising findings in the Shabwa area. In 1982, Agip made a marginal offshore discovery east-northeast of Mukalla.

The Yemen Arab Republic (YAR), also known simply as North Yemen or Yemen (Sanaʽa), was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the northwestern part of what is now Yemen. Its capital was at Sanaʽa. It united with the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (commonly known as South Yemen) on May 22, 1990 to form the current Republic of Yemen.