Argentina Court Suspends Sea Lion Oil Project Near Falklands

Federal Judge Mariel Borruto in Rio Grande, Tierra del Fuego, issued a provisional injunction suspending the Sea Lion offshore oil project about 220 kilometers north of the Falkland Islands. The order bars Rockhopper Exploration of the UK and Navitas Petroleum of Israel from drilling, installing infrastructure or extracting hydrocarbons until an Argentine environmental impact assessment is completed. The judge required the firms to refrain from initiating or carrying out material actions and gave them 10 days to detail project status, contractors and financiers. War veterans from the Center of Ex-Combatants of the Falkland Islands and environmental lawyers filed the suit earlier in September. Britain and Argentina dispute the islands, which Argentina calls the Malvinas. London rejects Argentine court jurisdiction and cites the 2013 referendum in which over 90 percent of islanders voted to remain a UK territory; Argentina rejects that result. The companies made a final investment decision in late 2025. Argentina said a day before the ruling it would file more complaints against firms exploring near the islands. The court called the measure provisional; a wire summary calls it largely symbolic because enforcement needs international cooperation and says the companies intend to keep advancing the project.