Seychelles

EITI Status Yet to be assessed against the 2016 Standard

EITI Member Since 2014

Latest Data From 2014

Overview

The country does not currently commercially produce oil, gas or minerals, although international companies are exploring for petroleum offshore. A commercially viable discovery could have a significant impact on a country with a population of around 90,000 and an economy dominated by tourism and fisheries. EITI reporting can provide insights to management of the nascent oil sector in the Seychelles including information on environmental risks associated to offshore oil exploration and production.

Tax and legal framework

The Ministry of Finance, Trade and the Blue Economy is responsible for the oil and gas sector. The Ministry also has oversight of the parastatal company PetroSeychelles, which is responsible for regulating the upstream petroleum sector and overseeing exploration activities. Based on preliminary exploration data, PetroSeychelles has revised its model petroleum agreement, including the fiscal regime.

The Seychelles Revenue Commission collects and accounts for revenues, including from the extractive sector. While the Seychelles Petroleum (Taxation) Act defines the Petroleum Income Tax (PIT), the model petroleum agreement defines the tax base and the allowable deductions and expenditure from the tax base.

Licences

Oil and gas exploration and production licenses are awarded on the basis of competitive tender. Only exploration licenses have been awarded to date.

Beneficial ownership disclosure

Objectives of beneficial ownership transparency in Seychelles

Promoting good governance

Progress on implementing beneficial ownership disclosure

Seychelles requested reporting companies to disclose beneficial ownership in its first EITI Report published in February 2016. Some companies provided information on their shareholders. Considering the small size of the sector and that most companies operating in the country are publicly listed, much of the information on company ownership is made available though existing company regulations.

Natural resources

Seychelles comprises 115 islands spread over 1.4 million sq. km in the western Indian Ocean, covering only 455 sq. km in land area. In 2012, the US Geological Service conducted an assessment of oil and gas resources along the coast of East Africa between Tanzania, Mozambique and Seychelles, yielding encouraging results. In 2013 Seychelles and Mauritius established a Joint Management Zone.

Commodity	Reserves	Unit	Significance
Oil	N/A		Prospecting offshore is ongoing.
Gas	N/A

USGS 2012 assessment

Revenue collection

The latest EITI disclosures (2014) show that Seychelles received USD 350,000 from extractive industry license fees. Two companies accounted for three quarters of these revenues. The Seychelles Revenue Commission (SRC) is the main body responsible for collecting taxes paid to central government, while the Ministry of Finance, Trade and the Blue Economy (MFTBE) manages various application and rental fees levied by PetroSeychelles.

Seychelles: Providing insights to a nascent sector

Innovations

The EITI encourages multi-stakeholder groups to explore innovative approaches to make the EITI more relevant and useful.

The 2013 and 2014 EITI Reports provide the first comprehensive description of the nascent oil and gas sector in Seychelles.
On the basis of preliminary geological data, the Seychelles Government has revised its petroleum legislation, including the fiscal regime, and Model Petroleum Agreement.
PetroSeychelles, the national oil company, has implemented an “Open Filing” procedure for accepting applications for petroleum concessions.

Implementation

Seychelles EITI is currently updating its work plan, which includes plans for developing a three-year beneficial ownership roadmap and assessing options for embedding EITI reporting in government systems. Seychelles EITI is also considering including relevant aspects to EITI reporting such as assessing the environmental impacts of the sector and designing a revenue management mechanism.

Governance

Seychelles has been an EITI Candidate since August 2014. The government issued a press release on 19 June 2013 announcing its intention to apply for EITI Candidature and reiterated this commitment in the 2014 Budget speech on 10 December 2013. The multi-stakeholder group, chaired by HE Patrick Payet, Principal Secretary for Finance, adopted its ToR on 15 May 2014 with 2.5 year term limits renewable two years.

Timeline

EITI Reports and other key documents

2013-2014 Seychelles EITI Report

Published Date:

February, 2016

Publisher:

Seychelles EITI

This EITI Report covers Seychelles' extractive sector in 2013 and 2014. It was published in February 2016.

Seychelles 2015 Annual Progress Report

Published Date:

July, 2016

Publisher:

Seychelles EITI

This is the Seychelles EITI 2015 Annual Progress Report (in accordance with Requirements 7.4 and 8.4).

Seychelles EITI 2014-2016 Work Plan

Published Date:

June, 2014

Publisher:

Seychelles EITI

This is the Seychelles EITI 2014-2016 work plan (in accordance with Requirement 1.5).

Ines Schjolberg Marques

ines.schjolberg.marques

Country Manager

imarques@eiti.org

Ines Schjolberg Marques is part of the Anglophone and Lusophone Africa team and supports wider policy work at the EITI International Secretariat. She holds an MSc in Development Studies from London School of Economics,

Eddie Rich

eddierich1

Deputy Head and Regional Director for Africa and the Middle East

erich@eiti.org

EITI responsibilities: Africa and Middle East. Oversight for finance, human resources, communications, and the Global conferences.

Eddie Rich has been Deputy Head of the EITI since the International Secretariat was established in 2007.

Overview

News, blogs and more

Seychelles: Providing insights to a nascent sector

Seychelles accepted as EITI Candidate