Oil production in the South American country of Guyana is targeted for a possible December start-up at the Liza Phase 1 Development, months ahead of the originally planned timeline of QI 2020.
The Liza field sits in the giant 6.6 million acres Stabroek Block offshore Guyana.
US oil major ExxonMobil made a record 14 discoveries on the block since 2015 and continues to search for more petroleum resources.
Hess Chief Executive Officer, John Hess, said in a report on Wednesday, “In September, we announced our 14th discovery in the Stabroek Block at Tripletail, offshore Guyana and are now targeting December for first oil from the Liza-1 development.”
Liza Phase 1 will produce up to 120,000 gross bopd utilizing the Liza Destiny FPSO, which arrived in Guyana on August 29, 2019. The FPSO was converted from a VLCC by Keppel. It will be able to store 1.6 million barrels of crude oil.
The Liza Phase 2 development was sanctioned in May 2019 and will use the Liza Unity FPSO to produce up to 220,000 gross bopd, with first oil expected by mid-2022. Pending government approvals, a third development, Payara, is expected to produce up to 220,000 bopd with startup in 2023.
The Stabroek Block is operated by ExxonMobil with a 45% interest while Hess and CNOOC Petroleum have 30% and 25% interest, respectively.