Guyana reported a significant boost in its crude oil export earnings, reaching US$5.39 billion for the first half of 2023, marking a substantial increase of US$1.78 billion compared to the prior year.
The surge in earnings was driven by a remarkable 106% increase in crude oil exports, rising from 33.4 million barrels to 68.8 million barrels, according to the recently released Bank of Guyana Half Year Report.
Liza 2 was second highest producing project in South America in 2022 – GlobalData | OilNOW
This surge in export volumes was primarily due to the successful startup of the Liza Unity floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit, Guyana’s second oil production vessel. The Liza Unity began operations on Feb. 11, 2022. It has a storage capacity of two million barrels of oil, and the capability to process 400 million cubic feet of gas daily.
Guyana is on track to produce more than 130 million barrels this year, above 101 million barrels in 2022.
The Guyana government expects the sector to grow by 39.6% this year as well.
Despite the growth in export volumes, the average export price for crude oil decreased by 27.5%, from US$108.08 per barrel to US$78.36 per barrel.
It is worth noting that a significant portion of Guyana’s oil exports has been directed to Europe, where demand has surged in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
Europe’s need for alternative energy sources has positioned Guyana as a valuable supplier during this unstable period.
Arthur Deakin, Director of Energy Practice at Americas Market Intelligence (AMI) said that since Guyana has delivered around 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent since 2015 – the largest offshore oil discovery in the past decade – it has the potential to replace at least 17% of the gas supply lost to Europe due to the Russia-Ukraine war.
