ExxonMobil’s fresh oil find off Guyana could form basis for future development
Oil major ExxonMobil has made an oil discovery at the Whiptail well, located in the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana, which could form the basis for future development.
The Whiptail-1 well encountered 246 feet (75 metres) of net pay in high-quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs. Drilling is also ongoing at the Whiptail-2 well, which has encountered 167 feet (51 metres) of net pay in high-quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs. Drilling continues at both wells to test deeper targets, and results will be evaluated for future development.
The Whiptail discovery is located approximately four miles south-east of the Uaru-1 discovery which was announced in January 2020 and approximately three miles west of the Yellowtail field.
Whiptail-1 is being drilled in 5,889 feet (1,795 metres) of water by the Stena DrillMAX. The previous discovery, which was announced last month and also located in the Stabroek Block, was also drilled using the same Stena drillship.
On the other hand, Whiptail-2, which is located three- miles northeast of Whiptail-1, is currently being drilled in 6,217 feet (1,895 metres) of water by the Noble Don Taylor
.
“This discovery increases our confidence in the resource size and quality in the south-east area of the Stabroek Block and could form the basis for a future development as we continue to evaluate the best sequence of development opportunities within the block”, said Mike Cousins, senior vice president of exploration and new ventures at ExxonMobil.
ExxonMobil envisions at least six projects online by 2027 and sees potential for up to ten projects to develop its current recoverable resource base.
The Liza Destiny floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel is currently producing about 120,000 barrels of oil per day.
The start-up of Liza Phase 2 remains on target for early 2022, and the Liza Unity FPSO expects to sail from Singapore to Guyana in late August 2021. The Unity has a production capacity of approximately 220,000 barrels of oil per day.
The hull for the Prosperity FPSO vessel is complete, and topsides construction activities are ongoing in Singapore with a start-up target of 2024. The first Payara development well was spudded in June 2021, and the offshore SURF installation will begin in 3Q 2021.
Yellowtail has been identified as the fourth development project in the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana with an anticipated start-up in 2025.
Following necessary government approvals and a final investment decision, this project will develop the Yellowtail and Redtail fields, which are located about 19 miles (30 kilometres) south-east of the Liza developments, and potentially adjacent resources.
Source: Offshore Energy Today