The Yellowtail development in the Stabroek Block, approximately 126 miles offshore Guyana, is the fourth project being undertaken by ExxonMobil and its partners and it is the first development that the Government of Guyana is pushing for specific oil spill insurance on.
The Liza-1, Liza-2 and Payara developments were approved and developed without an agreement on oil spill insurance between the government and Exxon’s local affiliate, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL). Guyana currently pumps an average of 124,000 barrels of oil per day and should there be a mishap in the process and oil spills into the Atlantic, then there is no specific insurance policy to cover response efforts.
On Thursday night during a virtual consultation on the Yellowtail Project, Head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Kemraj Parsram told the gathering that insurance would be covered in accordance with the Environmental Protection Act of Guyana.