Timor-Leste gained official independence in 2002. It remains one of the world's poorest countries despite being one of the richest in per capita oil and gas wealth. In July 2010 Timor-Leste became the third country to be designated EITI Compliant by the EITI International Board.
While Timor-Leste has been successful providing revenue information to enable public monitoring efforts, the country's public sector and institutions remain weak, and the government has a limited ability to be transparent or accountable in the national budgeting and execution process.
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Extractive Industries
Timor-Leste's proven oil and natural gas reserves (553.8 million bbl of oil and 7.1 trillion cubic feet of gas) place it in the same category as Uzbekistan, Bolivia, and Trinidad and Tobago. In 2009, government petroleum revenues accounted for 75% of GDP.
Oil and gas in 1994 launched a large-scale offshore oil industry. The enormous Bayu-Undan discovery includes an estimated 3.4 trillion cubic feet of gas and 400 million barrels of oil. The Greater Sunrise discovery includes a super-giant gas field, with estimated reserves totaling 8 trillion cubic feet of gas and 290 million barrels of oil. Despite these large reserves, the region remains under-explored and considerable offshore potential remains.
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