500 Million barrels of oil produced from Guyana’s Stabroek Block

ExxonMobil Guyana, along with its co-ventures Hess and CNOOC, announced on Wednesday that they have reached a significant milestone of 500 million barrels of oil produced from the Stabroek block offshore Guyana. This achievement comes less than five years after Guyana became an oil-producing nation.

According to a joint statement, the rapid pace of development in the Stabroek block was instrumental in reaching this production milestone, highlighting the country’s swift emergence as a major player in the global oil industry.

“Our unrivalled success in developing Guyana’s oil resources at an industry-leading pace, cost and environmental performance is built on close collaboration with the government of Guyana, as well as our co-ventures, suppliers and contractors,” said ExxonMobil Guyana President Alistair Routledge.

“We remain committed to Guyana for the long-term and look forward to continue delivering for the country,” he added.

ExxonMobil affiliate ExxonMobil Guyana Limited is operator and holds 45 per cent interest in the Stabroek block. Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd. holds 30 per cent interest, and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited holds 25 pe cent interest.

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The three companies say they have committed nearly US$55 billion to develop six government-sanctioned projects on Guyana’s offshore Stabroek block.

The statement said the first three projects – Liza Phase 1, Liza Phase 2 and Payara – are averaging more than 650,000 barrels of oil per day in production.

“Plans are in place to grow production capacity to more than 1.3 million barrels of oil per day by the end of 2027, when the ExxonMobil Guyana-led consortium anticipates having all six projects up and running offshore.”

The companies said that oil production would generate tens of billions of dollars of revenue and significant economic development for Guyana.

“Since first production in December 2019, more than US$5.4 billion in oil revenues and royalties have been paid into the Guyana Natural Resource Fund. More than 6,000 Guyanese support the Stabroek block operations, which is nearly 70 per cent of the industry workforce locally,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs,  Anil Nandlall, SC, has dismissed calls for a referendum on the ExxonMobil 2016 profit sharing agreement (PSA), labelling the proposal as “politically driven” and “a waste of time.”

Speaking on his weekly program “Issues in the News,” on Tuesday night, Nandlall criticised the opposition Alliance for Change (AFC) and Working People’s Alliance (WPA) for proposing a referendum on an agreement which he said they finalized without prior public consultation or input from the then opposition.

Nandlall described the AFC’s push for public interference as “ridiculous” and hypocritical, arguing that “they (AFC) hid this contract for nearly two years without telling the people of Guyana that they have signed a contract that is perhaps the most important document ever signed in the history of Guyana.”

He said the legal framework of the PSA explicitly states that it cannot be altered without permission from both parties, rendering any referendum powerless regardless of public sentiment.

“The contract itself says in about 10 clauses…that it cannot be altered unilaterally. It can only be altered with consent by both parties,” Nandlall said, acknowledging the unfavorable terms of the agreement.

But he said that the government will honor the agreement to protect Guyana’s credentials as an honest investment destination until a renegotiation is made possible.

Nandlall said by honoring the agreement, Guyana will solidify itself as a country committed to respecting all international agreements and democratic principles including the rule of law.

He said the rule of law is imperative to economic success as “obeying the rule of law is instrumental in creating the type of investment that will conduce to large investments coming to your country”.