Greece

Why Greece?

Greece's Mediterranean offshore is a frontier exploration region that holds strong geological promise. The Katakolon discoveries, along with hydrocarbon finds in neighboring Albania and Italy, provide evidence of a working hydrocarbon system. Offshore Greece features diverse geology with many different hydrocarbon play types to target. 

Licensing Round Opportunities

Greece is opening new frontiers for hydrocarbon exploration, with formal tenders set for two offshore blocks - A2 and South of Peloponnese - following expressions of interest.

Greece's Potential 

Offshore Greece lies within a tectonically active region, where the Kefalonia boundary acts as a transfer zone and marks the division between the Hellenides fold and thrust belt and the Hellenic Arc. To the south, the Mediterranean Ridge forms the Miocene-to-present accretionary wedge of the Hellenic Arc, shaped by the subduction of the African plate beneath Eurasia. Thick Messinian salt deposits developed in the deepest areas during the Miocene.

North of the Kefalonia transfer zone, the Apulian carbonate platform (Jurassic to early Miocene) extends eastward to meet the edge of the Hellenides fold and thrust belt. Hydrocarbon fields have been discovered on the Italian side of the Apulian platform and within the Albanides, part of the broader Hellenides fold and thrust system. Key trapping mechanisms in the region include sub-thrust, salt-related, and stratigraphic traps, with source rocks spanning Triassic and Jurassic-Cretaceous shales. Reservoirs consist of clastic and carbonate sequences.

Imaging deeper targets remains challenging due to complex tectonic deformation. However, recent exploration success in Mesozoic carbonate plays across the Eastern Mediterranean—whether biogenically charged (e.g., Egypt) or thermogenically charged (e.g., Libya)—highlights the potential of Greece’s offshore basins. With reprocessed and modern seismic data advancing exploration, Greece presents a strong opportunity for offshore hydrocarbon discoveries.