The ONE GUYANA floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel has begun producing oil as part of ExxonMobil’s Yellowtail development offshore Guyana.
Anthony Jackson, Asset Manager for the vessel, described the moment as deeply meaningful for the team behind it. “This is the coolest job I’ve had so far in my career, and I’ve had some cool jobs,” he said in an interview on ExxonMobil’s Pod Drop. “The thing that I love most about it is the people.”
He pointed to the commitment of the crew, including those who sailed with the vessel from Singapore to Guyana over a 60-day period. “They sacrificed with their time, because they believe in something,” he said. “There’s so much pride, there’s sincerity, there’s ownership…they’re doing something important.”
Jackson added that everyone involved in the Guyana project, from ExxonMobil to government partners and contractors, is contributing to a larger national effort. “We know that it’s like a manifest destiny type of thing – that you’re helping a country realize its ambitions and change into something that it wasn’t before.”
In a public message on LinkedIn announcing the start of operations, Jackson wrote, “First oil received at the ONE GUYANA FPSO! After an early morning choke opening, the team patiently watched as our first production fluids arrived at the FPSO topsides.”
He credited ExxonMobil Global Projects, SBM Offshore, TechnipFMC, and Saipem with delivering the vessel “ahead of schedule, under budget and at a level of completeness not seen in industry to date”.
Jackson noted that while the project involved over 40 million work hours, more than 40,000 tons of topsides, and 12 subsea manifolds capable of supporting more than 50 wells, it was the team’s day-to-day discipline that made the difference. “It’s the consistent daily efforts made by every individual on this team that enabled the results we see today,” he wrote.
The ONE GUYANA joins three other FPSOs already in operation – Liza Destiny, Liza Unity, and Payara Prosperity. Jackson said the team is ready to carry on that track record. “ExxonMobil Guyana is excited to inherit this proud legacy and continue the tradition of safe and stable operations.”
“Taking the first steps of this decades-long journey of Yellowtail operations is an opportunity I will truly cherish,” he said. “It’s the people, it’s the mission, and it’s the impact – those are the things that matter.”
