Guyana Could Become the Fastest Growing Oil Province in the World
The consortium, which includes ExxonMobil, US oil company Hess and China’s CNOOC, plans to spend $12.93 billion to develop its sixth offshore oil project in Guyana.
The floating production platform for the Whiptail project will start operating in 2027 and will provide more than 1.2 million barrels per day of oil production by the consortium led by Exxon Mobil Corp in Guyana.
Guyana could become the fastest growing oil province in the world in a decade. More than 11 billion barrels of oil and gas have been discovered in the country. Exxon and partners Hess Corp and CNOOC Ltd are currently producing 400,000 b/d from two platforms and have said they can develop up to 10 offshore projects.
The Whiptail project, unveiled on Monday by the Guyanese government, is similar to Exxon’s fifth project, Uaru, with a production of 250,000 b/d and a cap of 263,000 b/d. Exxon, Hess and CNOOC committed to spending $12.7 billion on Uaru earlier this year.
The Whiptail project does not plan to produce natural gas because studies have shown that any reduction in gas injection will result in reduced oil recovery.
The partners plan to drill up to 72 wells, with development drilling scheduled from late 2024 to mid-2030. Installation of the subsea components will begin in the second half of 2025 or early 2026, Exxon said.
