Exxon looks to add to Guyana exploration program

ExxonMobil Corp., Houston, is looking to add to its Guyana success story by applying to drill 35 exploration wells in four prospect areas of the Stabroek block.
If approved by Guyana regulators, ExxonMobil plans to start drilling the wells in 2028 and conclude in 2033, several media outlets reported this week. The proposed exploration and appraisal work would be about 120 miles offshore and, if successful, extend the company’s runway in Guyana beyond the four floating production, storage and offloading vessels it has online now and the four more scheduled to enter operations by 2030.
The assets online now produced more than 900,000 b/d in the first quarter while the planned additions will grow that figure to roughly 1.7 million b/d in the coming years. Speaking at the Bernstein 42nd Annual Strategic Decisions Conference last month, senior vice-president Neil Chapman called Exxon’s successes in Guyana, where it launched exploration activities in 2008, “extraordinary” and added that there’s very likely much more to come.
“Not only has it been successful, there remains a lot of potential,” Chapman said. “I think a lot of people are aware that 30% of the block is under force majeure because there’s a border dispute between Venezuela and Guyana. We anticipate, and I think the world anticipates, that will get resolved here in the next 12 months. And we’ll go on the lead of the Guyanese government [as to] what we want to do with that.”
Chapman also told the Bernstein audience that ExxonMobil is taking a broader view of potential growth offshore the northern coast of South America and pointed to a position the company has taken offshore Trinidad.
“I think this is pretty telling and I think most people can understand what we’re doing here,” he said. “We see this geological play going up through Guyana and potentially going into Trinidad and we’ve secured all of that, which offers us potential exploration.”