Guyana received US$2.57 billion (GY$536 billion) in oil revenue in 2024, based on monthly and quarterly reports of the Natural Resource Fund (NRF). The amount is 59% more than the approximately US$1.62 billion (GY$337 billion) that the NRF received in 2023.
The NRF, also known as the oil fund, is held by the New York Federal Reserve Bank and receives all of Guyana’s revenue from oil sales and royalties. Presently, all crude oil extraction in Guyana originates from the ExxonMobil-operated Stabroek Block, offshore.
Guyana received payments for 28 lifts of crude in 2024, totaling more than US$2.2 billion (GY$463 billion).
In 2024, the Fund received payments for the sale of seven lifts in Q1, eight in Q2, six in Q3, and seven in Q4. Two of the payments received in Q1 were for crude sold in Q4 2023. The Fund therefore received payments for 26 of the 28 lifts produced in 2024. The remaining two payments are expected to be reflected in a subsequent report of the Fund in 2025.
The Guyana government said 225 lifts of about a million barrels each were exported in 2024. Guyana’s 28-lift share represents the application of a formula that lets it receive approximately 12.5% of annual crude production. The government hires firms to market its share competitively.
ExxonMobil, Hess, and CNOOC take about 75% of annual production to recover expenses, and 12.5% as ‘profit oil’.
As for royalties, Guyana received US$348 million (GY$72 billion) in four quarterly payments last year. The royalty payments represent 2% of all crude produced and sold by the Exxon-led group.
Each quarterly payment is based on crude produced and sold in the previous quarter. Therefore, the first royalty payment of 2024 was based on sales from Q4 2023. Similarly, royalties for crude produced and sold in Q4 2024 will be paid into the Fund in Q1 2025.
While the State currently receives 12.5% of annual production, officials from the Guyana government and ExxonMobil believes the share will increase after the Stabroek Block co-venturers substantially recover their expenses. ExxonMobil Guyana President Alistair Routledge said in February 2024 that this could happen as early as 2026/2027. However, Exxon has since announced plans for two more oil developments, which will include expenses that could postpone this increase in Guyana’s share to later in the decade.
Cost recovery as of the end of 2024 is estimated to be approximately US$30 billion. The rate of recovery is accelerating as ExxonMobil increases production by adding new projects. Guyana’s Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has said that, with this acceleration, Guyana’s revenue will grow significantly in the future.
The ExxonMobil-led Stabroek Block group has sanctioned six oil developments thus far. The accumulated investments necessary to bring these developments on stream are estimated at more than US$50 billion. This is in addition to investments to drill more than 30 exploration and appraisal wells and other expenses. Audits of expenses incurred up to 2023 are ongoing, commissioned by the Guyana government.
So far, there are three producing projects, which have demonstrated a combined production capacity of approximately 660,000 barrels per day (b/d). Three more projects will begin production in 2025, 2026 and 2027. They are expected to increase capacity by 750,000 b/d.
ExxonMobil, the Stabroek Block operator, has a 45% stake, alongside Hess (30%) and CNOOC (25%). Exxon has discovered 11 billion oil-equivalent barrels.
Guyana’s Oil Ledger offers analyses of the latest oil production data and government oil fund receipts, published typically on a fortnightly basis. The column is authored by Kemol King, a journalist specializing in Guyana’s oil and gas sector.
