Guyana: Suriname's neighbour24 May 2018 23:20
Guyana leading way for region
As play moves towards centre stage, attention shifts to how Guianas will cope with Big Oil
Gareth Chetwynd
Rio de Janeiro
26 Apr 2018 23:00 GMT
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Drilling action is on the rise in the Guianas, amid signs that the Sorubim-1 wildcat could give ExxonMobil an eighth consecutive success off Guyana.
The US giant is stepping up development drilling on the pioneering Liza discovery and is using a second rig to appraise subsequent discoveries and drill new prospects
Over the border in Suriname, Kosmos Energy has spudded the Anapai-1 well and is expected to reach total depth in mid-May.
With other explorers such as Apache preparing their own exploration plans in Suriname, Repsol pursuing prospects down-dip of Liza in Guyana and Total planning to drill the Nasau prospect in French Guiana, the Guianas play is taking an important place on the industry stage.
Guyana, with its sparse but impoverished population and vast interior of pristine forest, will also be seen as a test case on whether managing oil resources is possible in a beneficial and sustainable manner.
ExxonMobil has so far found an estimated 3.2 billion barrels oil equivalent, but this looks set to increase again.
With the first floating production, storage and offloading vessel due to enter production in 2020 and studies on the next two floaters advancing, ExxonMobil is already talking about production surpassing 500,000 bpd.
There has been lively debate about the way contractual relations between the government and oil companies have been handled, stirring up criticisms about a perceived lack of transparency.
Wisely, the administration of President David Granger has sought help and advice from international agencies, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Inter-American Development Bank, based on concepts such as the latter�s Green State Development Strategy.
An IMF report on Guyana said ExxonMobil enjoys comparatively favourable terms and recommended Guyana consider a temporary moratorium on licensing until a new fiscal regime is in place.
It is easy to portray ExxonMobil as pushing around a small and institutionally weak nation, but this was a high-risk frontier play where the supermajor invested amid geopolitical uncertainty on maritime borders with Venezuela and Suriname.
Overcoming risks are the very essence of the oil business so ExxonMobil cannot be blamed for seeking attractive terms in such a frontier play.
But the IMF was also right to encourage Guyana to seek the best available terms on new contracts.
Future contracts will presumably include relinquished areas of ExxonMobil's Stabroek block, as well as shallow-water acreage and a deeper-water strip beyond.
The Granger administration has already signalled it will proceed only with advice from an internationally-recognised company with similar experience advising governments. The Minister of Natural Resources, Raphae