ExxonMobil has moved to a new well offshore the South American country of Guyana, where it has found over 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent since 2015, spread across more than 30 prolific discoveries.
The new well is called Lancetfish-1, a notice from Guyana’s Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) said. The government department said drilling operations were scheduled to start on December 7, utilising the MODU Noble Don Taylor.
This well is located approximately 192.7 kilometres (119.7 miles) off the Guyana coast and covers an area of 1 km2Â (0.39 mi2).
A commercial find at Lancetfish-1 could add to Exxon’s impressive 2022 record of nine discoveries so far. The period has been described as the best exploration year by Vice President – Exploration and Production for Hess, Timothy Chisholm. Hess is a 30% stakeholder in the prolific Stabroek Block.
This follows drilling operations at Fangtooth in October. Exxon sought to drill more in this area after results from a January discovery hinted that Fangtooth could support its own FPSO.
ExxonMobil and its partners have decided to pursue deeper targets like Fangtooth in the new year, reaching 18,000 feet.