Through a farm-down agreement with Malaysian company, PETRONAS – Petroliam Nasional Berhad (National Petroleum Limited), ExxonMobil has bought some 50 per cent of participating interest in the Suriname offshore Block 52 which is in range of its Guyana’s Stabroek Block offshore oil basin where it has already made 17 discoveries.
According to the agreement, PETRONAS as the operator of Block 52 holds 50 per cent equity, while ExxonMobil holds the remaining 50 per cent.
“Through its subsidiary, PETRONAS Suriname Exploration & Production B.V. (PSEPBV), has completed the farm-down of 50 per cent of its participating interest to ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Suriname B.V. (ExxonMobil) from a 100 per cent participating interest in Block 52, offshore Suriname,” a release from the company yesterday stated.
Block 52, according to the company, is located north of the coast of Paramaribo, Suriname’s capital city, and is situated in the prospective Suriname-Guyana basin where several major hydrocarbon discoveries were made recently. Block 52 covers an area of 4,749 km² with water depths ranging from 50 to 1,100 meters.
“Our upcoming exploration activities for Block 52 will involve the drilling of a well in Q3 2020, in addition to acquiring new 3D seismic data utilising the latest technology, covering the whole block to further evaluate the block’s upside potential. We look forward to this partnership with ExxonMobil and are determined to continue with the success story on hydrocarbon discoveries in the basin,” PETRONAS’ Vice President of Exploration, Emeliana Rice-Oxley is quoted as saying.
The company stated that in 2016, PSEPBV drilled the Roselle-1 well in Block 52 which provided crucial subsurface information and data on the petroleum system of the area. “Subsequent detailed analysis carried out by PSEPBV indicated that Block 52 contains multiple geological play types and is within the favourable fairway for hydrocarbon generation and accumulation. The recent oil discoveries in an adjacent block further support this assessment,” the statement said.
In addition to Block 52, PSEPBV also holds a 100 per cent participating interest and operatorship for Block 48, and a 30 per cent non-operated participating interest in Block 53 in Suriname’s offshore waters.
Since its discovery in 2015, ExxonMobil has entered into agreements with a number of small companies which have blocks near to its Stabroek Block location here and its actions has seen anti-corruption watchdog group Global Witness recommending that more effort be put into the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) to investigate the deals.
