Suriname’s Shallow Offshore Bid Round closed on April 30 with international oil companies showing interest in just 3 of the 8 oil blocks that were on offer.
According to state oil company Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname N.V., a total of 10 bids were received for 3 of the 8 blocks that went on offer on November 16, 2020.
“Staatsolie will now proceed with the bids evaluation and will further communicate with winning bidders before 30 May 2021 in order to proceed with PSC awards,” the company said. It did not reveal the 3 blocks for which bids were received nor the name of the companies.
Apache, Total attempting in Suriname what ExxonMobil accomplished in Guyana
The blocks that went on offer are directly in the migration pathway between the giant onshore producing fields and the recent deepwater discoveries at Block 58, which are both typed to the Albian, Cenomanian & Turonian (ACT) source kitchen.
Staatsolie had said the bid acreage is considered underexplored. Of these wells, AKT-2, drilled near the shelf edge, had encountered a 205m interval of shows in the Santonian equivalent to the deep-water discoveries, and another 87m of shows in the Albian.
Analysts familiar with the acreage told OilNOW it is likely that the bids received are for the blocks in closest proximity to Block 58, and the Guyana basin where over 21 discoveries have been made since 2015, the bulk of which are in the prolific Stabroek Block. In Suriname, a total of 5 discoveries have been made offshore to date – 4 at Block 58 and 1 at Block 52.
Guyana will be looking to sell oil blocks to highest bidders, country could retain some acreage
Staatsolie said the new blocks will be awarded under the terms of the petroleum legislation which governs the exploration, appraisal, development, and production of hydrocarbons in the country.
