Zürich-based investment bank Credit Suisse sees potential at Guyana’s Stabroek Block for 9 development phases that would push production well above 1 million barrels of oil per day and expects the resource estimate on the block to further increase beyond the more than 8 billion barrels of oil equivalent resources.
In a report seen by OilNOW, Credit Suisse said while Stabroek Block operator ExxonMobil (XOM) maintained in its Q1 earnings report last week its development plan of 5 FPSOs with the plateau production capacity of >750 MBbld, the company is poised to benefit from meaningful long-term growth and resource upside from its developments offshore Guyana. In January the company increased it resource estimate on the block from >6 BBoe to >8 BBoe (based on 15 of its 16 discoveries to date).
“Given XOM has made eight additional discoveries and raised the resource estimate from >4 BBoe to the current >8 BBoe since first announcing its >750 MBbld gross production target by 2025 in July 2018, we believe the market (and us) was expecting the company to extend and raise this longer-term outlook, providing greater visibility toward how large production could be beyond 2025,” Credit Suisse said in its report.
“Nonetheless, we still see the potential for at least nine phases enabling plateau production well above 1 MMBbld even before including another ~50 additional exploration leads left to test on the block which leave room for further resource upside to the >8 BBoe,” the report stated.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Exxon Mobil Corporation, Darren Woods told investors Friday that Guyana remains a key part of the oil major’s growth plans. “Guyana remains an integral part of our long-term growth plans and as such is a high priority,” Woods stated.
The company began producing oil at the Liza Phase 1 Development offshore the South American country last December. Woods said current operations onboard the Liza Destiny production vessel continue on schedule, and startup of the second phase of field development remains on target for 2022, with the Liza Unity production vessel currently under construction.
The company is currently awaiting government approval to proceed with a third production vessel for the Payara development.
Credit Suisse said with an estimated queue of ~50 additional prospects on the block left to evaluate, ExxonMobil is currently planning for five additional exploration wells this year.
