ExxonMobil Corporation, through its subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), has submitted an application to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for permission to undertake its sixth project in the Stabroek Block.
This development seeks to produce approximately 220,000 to 275,000 barrels of oil per day by 2027-2028 from the Whiptail field.
Guyana Standard understands that the Whiptail Project will be implemented in multiple stages which include the following activities: well drillings and completions, mobilization and installation of subsea equipment, umbilicals, risers and flowlines (SURF), installation of a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) facility, and commencement of production operations.
At peak, EEPGL said it will be supported by approximately 1,200 offshore personnel during the well drilling and oil production installation stages. This number will decrease to less than 200 personnel during the production phase. A smaller number of personnel will be utilized at the onshore support facilities.
In light of the foregoing activities, the EPA has required that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) be done before any decision can be made as to its approval or rejection.
Members of the public are hereby invited, within 28 days from January 16, 2023, to make written submissions to the agency, setting out those questions and matters which they require to be answered or considered in the EIA.
OTHER PROJECTS
EEPGL and its co-venture partners, Hess Corporation and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited, currently have four sanctioned developments on the Stabroek Block.
The Liza Phase 1 and Phase 2 developments are currently operating at their combined gross production capacity of more than 360,000 barrels of oil per day.
The third development at Payara is on track to come online at the end of 2023 utilizing the Prosperity FPSO with a production capacity of approximately 220,000 gross barrels of oil per day.
The fourth development, Yellowtail, is expected to come online in 2025, utilizing the ONE GUYANA FPSO with a production capacity of approximately 250,000 gross barrels of oil per day.
A plan of development is under examination by the EPA for a fifth oil production venture at the Uaru field. It is expected to come online at the end of 2026 with a gross production capacity of approximately 250,000 barrels of oil per day. EEPGL said that this project will cost US$12.6B. The sixth project is estimated to carry a similar price tag.
With the six platforms on stream, Guyana would be producing 1.3 million barrels of oil per day. This would place it on par with Qatar, the 15th largest oil producer in the world.
