A high-level delegation from Petronas recently convened discussions with the Suriname government to detail plans for a potential project at its offshore block 52.
A report from Barbados NationNews said that Petronas executives disclosed intentions to undertake further exploration drilling before making a decision.
“We are contemplating conducting at least two additional drillings in the coming year to amass more comprehensive data for our field plans. These efforts aim to facilitate in-depth studies that could pave the way for a final investment decision,” Adnan Zainal Abidin, Petronas’ Chief Operating Officer (COO) is quoted as saying.
On November 2, Petronas announced an oil discovery at the Roystonea-1 exploration well. Further evaluation is being undertaken to determine the full extent of the discovery and its potential development synergy with the Sloanea-1 discovery made in 2020 within the same block.
Suriname’s state oil firm Staatsolie had deemed Sloanea-1 has “promising” potential to become a natural gas development.
Block 52, covering an area of 4,749 square kilometers, is strategically located north of the coast of Paramaribo, Suriname’s capital city, in the promising Guyana-Suriname basin. Petronas Suriname E&P, as the block’s operator, has a 50% participating interest and ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Suriname B.V. holds the remaining 50%.
