With Uaru set to come online this year, attention will turn to ExxonMobil’s next Stabroek Block development, Whiptail.
ExxonMobil has been engaged in development drilling offshore, as it prepares to bring Whiptail online in 2027.
The project’s floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO), Jaguar, is designed to produce oil at up to 250,000 barrels per day (b/d). SBM Offshore is constructing the FPSO, while TechnipFMC will supply the subsea production systems.
Whiptail is targeting an estimated resource base of more than 850 million barrels of oil, making it the second largest after Yellowtail, which is estimated at 925 million barrels. The approved Uaru project is targeting about 800 million barrels.
Once operational, the Whiptail project’s Jaguar vessel is expected to help lift Guyana’s total offshore oil production capacity to more than 1.4 million b/d.
Whiptail’s design is expected to incorporate lessons from earlier projects such as Liza 1, Liza 2, and Payara. This includes optimized subsea layouts and improved gas handling systems to support higher efficiency and lower emissions during production.
ExxonMobil operates Guyana’s Stabroek Block with a 45% stake, with co-venturers Hess, owned by Chevron (30%), and CNOOC (25%). The oil major has discovered an estimated 11 billion oil-equivalent barrels there.
