October 14, 2022 [Medium] – On 5 June 2022 the American energy giant ExxonMobil made two new offshore discoveries in Guyana said to be capable of producing ~10 million oil-equivalent barrels.
Referred to as Fangtooth and Lau Lau, these two new discoveries add to the Stabroek block which began producing crude oil in 2019. With stakes from offshore companies Hess (30%) and CNOOC (25%), the Liza Unity FPSO vessel began operating in offshore Guyana in October 2021 after ExxonMobil raised estimates for crude production by 1 billion oil-equivalent barrels.
The initial offshore discoveries at offshore Guyana in October 2021 has led to a flurry of investments from some of the world’s largest companies to date. BHP Group got approval to conduct 3D seismic surveys at the offshore blocks. ExxonMobil also plans to increase production at offshore Guyana with four FPSOs capable of producing 800,000 barrel per day (bpd) by 2025. Because of these reasons Hess CEO, John Hess, said:
With a 25% stake in the offshore Stabroek Block, China’s largest offshore oil & gas producer — China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) — notes that crude oil production in offshore Guayana is the company’s most valuable international investment for crude oil production. It was also reported that CNOOC intends to raise its oil and gas production by more than 6 percent each year from 2022–2024.
This means that offshore Guyana is a critical part of China’s energy security strategy, for which crude oil production is the major factor to secure a diversified and stable energy mix for the world’s largest manufacturing country and second largest economy.
The Greater Guyana Initiative was established by ExxonMobil, Hess and CNOOC to commit funds to projects that contribute to the sustainable development of Guyana’s economy and people, including regional initiatives that suppoer development work in the country’s modern agriculture and health.
ExxonMobil’s offshore discoveries are also going to provide jobs for 3,500 Guyanese people while directly working with a number of local suppliers on the projects.
The examples of Guyana do indeed prove how crucial commodites are becoming to geopolitics. One aspect of the offshore Guyana project is that it has increased tensions over a historical border dispute with Venezuela.
Podcast by Monroe Mayfield
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