Argentine President Javier Milei has delivered a warning to the UK, setting a two-week deadline to halt oil exploration activity at the Sea Lion oilfield off the Falkland Islands, or face international legal action.
President Milei announced the ultimatum on social media, threatening to initiate arbitration against the UK if continued work on the field does not cease.
The Sea Lion project is operated by Tel Aviv-listed Navitas Petroleum, which holds a 65% working interest. The remaining 35% stake is held by London-listed Rockhopper Exploration.
Both companies operate under licences issued by British authorities.
Sea Lion sits around 220km north of the Falkland Islands within production licences PL032 and PL004b, and contains estimated reserves of 1.7 billion barrels of oil, according to Rockhopper.
Navitas Petroleum Development and Production, Navitas’ UK subsidiary, and Rockhopper took a final investment decision (FID) on the Sea Lion Northern Development project, securing approvals and funding for full-scale execution.
Extraction is expected to commence by March 2028, with development work potentially starting in the next few months.
Milei specified that, failing compliance with the two-week deadline, he had “instructed the Foreign Ministry and legal teams to initiate international arbitration” over “the illegal plundering of our resources through the Sea Lion Project”.
If operations continue after this period, Argentina intends to escalate the dispute to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
In recent statements, Milei criticised the UN for inaction concerning the long-standing sovereignty dispute, asserting that it is “a useless organisation” serving “arrogant parasites dressed up as well-intentioned bureaucrats”.
Earlier this month, he also indicated plans to send an urgent sovereignty defence bill to Congress aimed at tightening penalties against companies operating around the islands without Argentine authorisation.
These changes would widen the scope of sanctions to include corporate directors, shareholders and suppliers.
UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has responded, stating that Argentina “lacks the ability” to reclaim the Falklands by force, reported the BBC.
The sovereignty of the islands, known in Argentina as Las Malvinas, remains disputed following the conflict in 1982 when a British task force retook the territory after an Argentine occupation.
In a 2013 referendum, 99.8% of residents voted to remain a British Overseas Territory.
“Argentina warns UK of legal action over Sea Lion oil development” was originally created and published by Offshore Technology, a GlobalData owned brand.
