Page 8 - LatAmOil Week 12 2023
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LatAmOil                                         GUYANA                                             LatAmOil



                         It further clarified that it had agreed to let Exx-  available, it said.
                         onMobil and its partners self-insure against oil   In any event, the EPA explained, even if
                         spills at the time when it issued a production   the government were willing to entertain the
                         permit for Liza 1, the first oilfield to come on   demand for “unlimited insurance” against oil
                         stream at Stabroek. This practice of self-insur-  spills at Stabroek, insurers would be reluctant to
                         ance is not only in line with the 2016 Stabroek   offer their services under those conditions. It is
                         Block agreement but also common in the oil and   considered unreasonable and impractical in the
                         gas industry, it said.               risk management business to provide coverage
                           Under this self-insurance policy, the inves-  without being able to place an exact figure on
                         tors provided $600mn worth coverage for   future potential claims, it said.
                         oil spills, the EPA noted. They also agreed to   The agency said it was reviewing several
                         meet the same capping stack requirement later   different options with the aim of providing the
                         included in the permit issued for Yellowtail,   government of Guyana with the most effective
                         the fourth development project planned at   coverage against oil spills.
                         Stabroek, making Guyana the only country in   It did not identify the options that were
                         South America to have such equipment readily   under consideration. ™



                                                      SURINAME
       Hess CEO: New exploration well to



       be spudded at Block 42 later this year






                         THE US independent Hess Corp. has said that   TotalEnergies and APA have made there thus far
                         a new exploration well will be spudded at Block   has different characteristics – that is, a different
                         42 offshore Suriname later this year.  mix of crude oil and natural gas.
                           As of press time, the company had not iden-  Overall, he said, Block 58 is likely to prove
                         tified the drilling site by name. But its CEO, John   “more gassy.” TotalEnergies and APA are still
                         Hess, was quoted by OilNOW.gy as saying that   trying to find enough crude oil to ensure that
                         his company had high hopes for Block 42, which   development is commercially viable, he said.
                         lies directly north of the Block 58 licence area   Despite the outstanding questions about
                         that Suriname has assigned to operator TotalEn-  Block 58, Hess said his company remained opti-
                         ergies (France) and its partner APA (US).  mistic about Block 42. The partners have a good
                           According to Hess, the experience gained   understanding of the region’s geology, thanks
                         during exploration work at Block 58 indicates   to Hess’ status as a minority shareholder in the
                         that Block 42 is likely to hold hydrocarbons. He   Stabroek block offshore Guyana, where Exxon-
                         also stressed, though, that Block 58 was het-  Mobil has discovered 11bn barrels of oil equiv-
                         erogeneous in nature, as each discovery that   alent (boe) in recoverable reserves, he declared.


























                             Block 42 lies directly to the north of Block 58, where multiple finds have been made (Image: Kosmos Energy)



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