Subsea tiebacks are playing a key role in the development and expansion of offshore oil production in Guyana’s Stabroek Block, where ExxonMobil Guyana and its co-venturers lead major projects.
The Stabroek Block hosts multiple developments that use tiebacks, like Payara and Yellowtail.
What is a subsea tieback?
A subsea tieback is a system that enables oil or gas production from a field by connecting it to existing offshore infrastructure already serving another field, thereby mitigating costs.
Subsea tiebacks work by connecting subsea wells drilled on the ocean floor to a host facility through pipelines and other subsea equipment. The wells are not connected to shore, but instead send produced oil and gas directly to FPSOs for processing, storage, and export.
Chevron’s Chapter Manager of Subsea Controls and Power, Rick Kopps, explained the concept in simple terms in an article published on May 15, 2025.
“One way to think of a tieback is as a long garden hose running from a faucet to a garden—or, in this case, from a resource to a production facility,” Kopps said.
He outlined how production is moved from the seabed to surface facilities.
“To create a tieback, an oil and gas company drills wells on the seabed and then installs equipment that directs the hydrocarbon flow through a gathering system,” he explained.
Once connected, the hydrocarbons flow through subsea pipelines to FPSOs, where initial processing and storage take place before they are exported. This configuration allows production from multiple fields to be handled through a single offshore hub.
Why does it matter?
The model is used in Guyana because it improves efficiency and reduces capital costs.
The Payara and Yellowtail projects, currently in operation, use tiebacks. Payara is the anchor of the Payara development, while the tieback is Pacora. For Yellowtail, the tieback is Redtail.
Uaru, the fifth project, is currently in development, and will utilize more tiebacks than previous projects. While Uaru is the anchor, the Mako and Snoek fields are connected via tieback.
According to TechnipFMC, the use of standardized subsea systems also supports faster project execution and more efficient development, helping accelerate delivery of the project’s planned 250,000 barrels per day output in the Stabroek Block.
Uaru is set to begin production in 2026.
ExxonMobil operates Guyana’s Stabroek Block with a 45% stake, with co-venturers Hess (30%) and CNOOC (25%). The oil major has discovered an estimated 11 billion oil-equivalent barrels there.
