ExxonMobil to relinquish shares in Guyana

Guyana intends to take back 20% of the shares of its prolific Stabroek Block from ExxonMobil and its partners, vice-president Bharrat Jagdeo told Reuters on Friday.

The move is legal under the contract, which allows Guyana to reclaim unexplored areas of the concession.

The vice-president says the move falls under the country’s strategy to create more competition in its nascent upstream sector and is expected before 2024.

The Stabroek Block is currently operated by ExxonMobil along with partners Hess Corporation and China National Offshore Oil Corporation.

Estimated reserves of more than 11 billion boe have been discovered on the block.

The 26,800 square-kilometre concession currently produces 380,000 boepd from the Liza Destiny and Liza Unity FPSOs.

The consortium intends to up production capacity to 1.2 million boepd by the end of 2027 by adding four new FPSOs to the project.

The country is currently promoting its first offshore hydrocarbons bid round launched in December 2022, which put 14 blocks on offer with potential resources of more than 25 billion barrels.