Latest discoveries in Stabroek Block could hold over half a billion barrels of recoverable oil resources –Rystad Energy

Following its data review of the most recent discoveries in the Stabroek Block, being Fangtooth and Lau Lau, Norwegian Consultancy Group, Rystad Energy says the two finds could hold over half a billion barrels of recoverable hydrocarbon resources. Rystad said this brings the total discovered volumes in the Guyana-Suriname basin to more than 12.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent resources.

With numerous untapped prospects and more than a dozen wildcats lined up for drilling this year, Rystad said the basin could be poised to exceed the current 13.6 billion barrels estimate by the US Geological Survey.

ExxonMobil operates the Stabroek block with a 45% interest, with partners Hess on 30% and CNOOC on 25%.

Fangtooth was spudded in late November by the drillship Stena DrillMax in 1,838 meters of water, about 18 kilometers northwest of the producing Liza field and east of Tullow Oil’s Orinduik block which holds the Tertiary Joe and Jethro heavy-oil discoveries.

Lau Lau-1 followed soon after, drilled by the drillship Noble Don Taylor in slightly shallower waters of 1,461 meters, about 68 kilometers southeast of the Liza field.

Both wells were optimally placed to target multiple stacked reservoirs of Lower Campanian and Upper Santonian sandstone. The wells encountered high-quality reservoir sections with net pay of 50 meters in Fangtooth and 96 meters in Lau Lau, according to the operator.

The competitiveness of the Stabroek finds has enabled ExxonMobil to fast-track development and the partners are currently producing around 120,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from the Liza Phase One Project. Output is set to ramp up with Liza Phase 2 during the first half of 2022, followed by Payara and Pacora, for which a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel is currently being constructed by SBM in Singapore. SBM is also performing front-end engineering and design work for an FPSO for the Yellowtail project, which is expected to be approved this year and start producing by 2025-26.