The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has taken a sweeping step toward fossil fuel expansion, placing more than half of its national territory—comprising vast expanses of intact tropical forests, crucial peatlands, and irreplaceable wildlife habitats—on the auction block for oil and gas exploration. According to a comprehensive new report titled Forests to Frontlines: Oil Expansion Threats in the DRC, published by Earth Insight in partnership with local environmental coalitions, the government’s latest licensing round threatens 64 percent of the country’s pristine forests. This aggressive push into ecologically fragile regions directly imperils critical populations of mountain gorillas, eastern lowland gorillas, and bonobos, while threatening the livelihoods of approximately 39 million people who rely on these ecosystems for survival.
The decision marks a dramatic escalation from the DRC’s controversial 2022 oil auction, which initially sparked international outcry by opening 30 oil and gas blocks to development. With the current auctioning round adding 52 new blocks to the three previously awarded, the total land area designated for hydrocarbon extraction now covers over 53 percent of the nation. Environmental watchdogs and local civil society groups warn that this expansion jeopardizes global climate stability, threatens indigenous land rights, and contradicts the nation’s own stated conservation commitments.
A Fragile Mosaic of Biodiversity Under Siege
The DRC represents one of the most ecologically significant regions on Earth. It harbors the second-largest tropical rainforest on the planet, serving as a biological sanctuary for thousands of endemic plant species, elephants, great apes, and rare bird populations. Within this vast landscape lies the Cuvette Centrale, the largest tropical peatland complex in the world. Spanning millions of hectares, these carbon-rich peatlands store an estimated 30 gigatons of carbon, making them an indispensable weapon in the global fight against climate change. Releasing this stored carbon through industrial development or peatland degradation would unleash catastrophic amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, rendering international climate targets nearly unattainable.
Despite these global stakes, the newly designated oil blocks overlap heavily with protected areas and biodiversity hotspots. Data compiled in the Forests to Frontlines report reveals that the oil concessions intersect with 20.5 million acres of officially protected areas, 21.3 million acres of Key Biodiversity Areas, and 165.1 million acres of intact tropical forest. Furthermore, 72 percent of the recently established Kivu-Kinshasa Green Corridor—promoted by the government as a flagship ecological and sustainable development initiative—now intersects directly with these oil blocks, severely undermining its ecological integrity and its credibility as a genuine climate solution.
Chronology of Fossil Fuel Expansion in the DRC
The current crisis is the culmination of years of shifting energy policies, economic pressures, and balancing acts between international conservation financing and domestic resource monetization.
In May 2021, the DRC government lifted a decade-long moratorium on oil and gas exploration in order to boost state revenues and develop national infrastructure, setting the stage for future leasing rounds. By July 2022, the Ministry of Hydrocarbons officially launched a major licensing round for 30 oil and gas blocks. This initial move drew immediate criticism from conservationists and scientists worldwide because many of the blocks overlapped with Virunga National Park—a UNESCO World Heritage site and the primary refuge for the critically endangered mountain gorilla—as well as vital Cuvette Centrale peatlands.
Throughout 2023 and 2024, despite intense domestic resistance and stalled international funding promises, the government defended its sovereign right to exploit natural resources to lift its population out of poverty. International donors attempted to negotiate forest protection pacts, such as the Central African Forest Initiative (CAFI), but disagreements over funding disbursements and economic alternatives left the government searching for alternative revenue streams.
By mid-2025, the administration significantly widened the scope of its fossil fuel ambitions. The launch of the expanded auction round, encompassing 52 new blocks, dwarfed the 2022 initiative. This escalation prompted Earth Insight, alongside the Coalition des Organisations de la Societé Civile pour le Suivi des Reformes et de Action Publique (CORAP), Our Land Without Oil, and Rainforest Foundation UK, to release their definitive threat assessment, bringing international scrutiny back to the heart of the Congo Basin.
Voices of Opposition and Civil Society Backlash
The decision to auction off a majority of the country’s landmass has triggered fierce pushback from local communities, Indigenous Peoples, and environmental defenders who argue that the policy sacrifices long-term ecological stability for short-term financial gains.
Pascal Mirindi, campaign coordinator for Notre Terre Sans Pétrole, highlighted the glaring contradiction between the government’s conservation rhetoric and its actual policies. Pointing out the dissonance surrounding the Kivu-Kinshasa ecological corridor, Mirindi questioned the logic of leaders who promote environmental connectivity on paper while selling off the underlying land to petroleum interests. He emphasized that the Congolese people are the primary sovereign of the land and vowed that citizens would not remain silent while their collective future is compromised.
Anna Bebbington, a research manager at Earth Insight, echoed these concerns, emphasizing that industrial development in these fragile environments would deliver devastating blows to global biodiversity, community land tenure rights, and the international architecture designed to mitigate climate change. Indigenous communities, who have acted as effective stewards of these forests for generations, report that they were largely excluded from meaningful consultations regarding the demarcation of the oil blocks. For the 39 million people living in or near the affected zones, the expansion threatens not only their immediate physical environment but also their cultural identity, traditional knowledge systems, and subsistence economies.
Implications for Global Climate and Biodiversity Goals
The expansion of oil and gas exploration in the DRC carries profound implications that extend far beyond national borders. As global leaders struggle to keep global temperature increases within manageable thresholds, the integrity of major carbon sinks like the Congo Basin is non-negotiable. Turning these carbon-dense forests and peatlands into industrial zones risks converting a vital planetary asset into a net carbon source.
From a biodiversity standpoint, the fragmentation of intact habitats through seismic testing, road construction, drilling rigs, and the influx of human settlement will inevitably accelerate species decline. Great apes, which have highly specific territorial and dietary requirements, are exceptionally sensitive to human disturbance and poaching pressures associated with industrial infrastructure.
Furthermore, the situation exposes deep systemic challenges in international climate finance. Developing nations often argue that wealthy industrialized countries, historically responsible for the vast majority of global emissions, fail to provide adequate financial compensation to offset the economic opportunity costs of leaving fossil fuels in the ground. Without robust, reliable, and equitable international support that directly benefits local populations, resource-rich governments frequently feel compelled to tap into fossil fuel reserves to fund basic public services and economic development.
Pathways Forward and Demands from the Ground
In response to the escalating crisis, civil society organizations and environmental researchers have outlined clear, actionable demands for the DRC government and its international partners. The primary recommendation calls for the immediate cancellation of the 2025 licensing round and a permanent halt to all future hydrocarbon expansion within ecologically sensitive zones and indigenous territories.
Additionally, the report urges policymakers to fully respect and uphold the land rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, ensuring their active, meaningful participation in environmental governance, decision-making, and monitoring processes. International donors and financial institutions are also urged to realign their support with binding commitments to biodiversity preservation, human rights, and climate action, ensuring that economic aid genuinely rewards sustainable development rather than extractive industries.
As the DRC stands at a critical historical crossroads, the decisions made in the coming months will reverberate globally. Whether the country chooses to preserve its status as a foundational pillar of Earth’s climate stability and biodiversity, or proceeds down a path of widespread industrial transformation, will shape the ecological future of the planet for generations to come.
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