From: The Guyana Petroluem Digest
January 5, 2021
Despite Venezuela’s proven oil reserves standing at a whooping 303 billion barrels – the largest in the world – Guyana, its English-speaking neighbour to the east, with only 9bn barrels of oil found so far, is on track to surpass the Bolivarian Republic’s current daily output levels by 2026.
In fact, international industry analysts predict that the small English-speaking nation on the northern shoulder of South America could potentially produce about 1.2 million barrels of oil per day in the next decade, raking in billions of US dollars that can astronomically transform the country’s fragile economic, industrial and infrastructural landscape.
Venezuela has been crippled by United States sanctions and internal political turmoil with calls for President Nicolas Maduro to step-down. According to Bloomberg, Venezuela only sold about 231,613 barrels a day in December 2020, down by half from November.
Over a year ago Venezuela was producing just under a million bpd, but later in 2020, output slumped to as low a 300,000 bpd before recovering to about 500,000 bpd. Guyana, by 2026, is set to produce about 750,000 bpd through a consortium of ExxonMobil-Hess-CNOOC, from its world-class Stabroek Block offshore.
The New York Times recently quoted, Pilar Navarro, a Caracas-based economist as saying: “Venezuela, the country that a decade ago was the largest producer in Latin America, earning about US$90 billion a year from oil exports, was expected to net about US$2.3 billion by the end of 2020 — less than the aggregate amount that Venezuelan migrants who fled the country’s economic devastation will send back home to support their families.”
Guyana exports all of the oil it produces. The Liza Phase 1 field reached its 120,000 bpd capacity at the end of 2020 while the Liza Phase 2 field is set to come on stream with 220,000 bpd in 2022. Additionally, the recently approved Payara field, also on the stabroek, will begin producing 220,000 bpd in 2024.
Liza Phase 1 Project – Description
The Liza Phase 1 development is approximately 190 kilometres offshore in water depths of 1,500– 1,900 metres.
The project includes a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, Liza Destiny; designed to produce up to 120,000 barrels of oil per day, with storage capacity of up to 1.6 million barrels.
There are four drill centres with 17 wells in total; eight oil producing wells, six water injection wells, and three gas reinjection wells.
Liza Phase 2 Project – Description
The development involves a second floating, production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO), Liza Unity; designed to produce up to 220,000 barrels of oil per day.
The development is similar to that of Liza phase 1 but with a total of six drill centres with approximately 30 wells, including 15 oil producing wells, nine water injection wells and six gas injection wells. Liza Phase 2 startup is expected in mid-2022.
Payara Project – Description
The Payara development plan includes a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, named Prosperity; it is expected to produce 220,000 barrels per day.
The development is similar to that of Liza phase 1 and 2, Payara will have up to 45 wells, including production wells, water injection wells and gas injection wells.
Startup is expected in 2024.
The Stabroek Block is 6.6 million acres (26,800 square kilometres) with current discovered recoverable resources estimated at more than 8 billion oil-equivalent barrels. The 18 discoveries on the block to date have established the potential for at least five Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels producing more than 750,000 barrels of oil per day by 2026.
Currently, the FPSO Liza Destiny is operating in the Liza 1 field; FPSO Liza Unity, still under construction, will operate in the Liza Phase 2 and the FPSO Liza Prosperity will work in the Payara field.
ExxonMobil affiliate Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited is operator and holds 45 percent interest in the Stabroek Block. Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd. holds 30 percent interest and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CNOOC Limited, holds 25 percent interest.