Black Sea Territorial Dispute Resolved

An area of continental shelf in the Black Sea reported to contain huge reserves of oil and gas has been awarded 80% to Romania and 20% to Ukraine by the International Court of Justice.

The territory comprises part of the continental shelf around a rocky outcrop – owned by Ukraine and known as Serpents' Island – which contains a reported 100 billion m³ of natural gas and 10 million tonnes of crude oil.

The ICJ is the United Nations' highest court and its rulings cannot be appealed.

Tenders to extract these resources can now be organised by the Ukrainian and Romanian governments. Media reports suggest that Total, Royal Dutch Shell, BP and OMV have all expressed an interest in investing in the area.