Countries with some of the world’s most mature petroleum industries now rank behind Guyana in per capita oil production, according to figures from scientific publication Our World in Data (OWID).
Guyana secured the top position in November 2025, and the updated rankings show that a young producer with just five years of output now leads nations that have been exporting crude for decades.
OWID’s dataset, based on kilowatt-hours (kWh) of oil and liquid hydrocarbons produced per person, places Kuwait behind Guyana at 308,180 kWh, followed by Qatar at 287,968 kWh. The United Arab Emirates comes next with 189,574 kWh. Norway and Saudi Arabia, both widely regarded as global energy powerhouses, follow with 179,100 kWh and 174,699 kWh, respectively.
Other experienced exporters now behind Guyana include Brunei at 121,868 kWh, Oman at 105,553 kWh and Libya at 87,801 kWh. Canada, Iraq, Gabon, Kazakhstan, Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran and the United States complete the group of countries that trail the new leader.
Guyana’s position is even more striking given its brief history as a producer.
Crude extraction only began in December 2019. By November 2025, output had reached 900,000 barrels per day across developments in the Stabroek Block. The country’s small population of roughly 750,000 has pushed it quickly to the top of global per capita rankings.
Guyana’s oil sector has surged ahead, growing from about 120,000 barrels per day just five years ago to a multi-project powerhouse. To date, over US$60 billion has been poured into seven sanctioned developments in the Stabroek Block.
Two major projects, Uaru and Whiptail, are slated to start up in 2026 and 2027, each targeting 250,000 barrels per day. Hammerhead is expected to come on stream in 2029 at 150,000 barrels per day, while the proposed Longtail development is still under evaluation.
With this trajectory, Guyana’s total production could climb to roughly 1.7 million barrels per day by 2030.
