January 30th, 2020 – Georgetown, Guyana – Suriname is thrust into the global spotlight as a recent discovery indicates the prolific ExxonMobil Stabroek block offshore Guyana may extend into the South American country’s waters.
The Maka Central-1 test well drilled offshore Suriname by Apache Corporation encountered 73 meters (240 ft) of oil pay and 50 meters (164 ft) of light oil and condensate pay in Upper Cretaceous-aged intervals. The Maka Central-1 is a very short distance from the Haimara-1, the well that marked ExxonMobil’s 12th discovery in the Stabroek block.
Haimara-1 encountered approximately 63 meters (207 ft) of high-quality, gas-condensate bearing sandstone reservoir. The well was drilled to a depth of 5,575 meters (18,289 feet) in 1,399 meters (4,590 feet) of water, numbers which provide a solid indicator for the Maka Central-1 discovery.
The Maka discovery is in Block 58, which until recently, was under the full ownership of Apache. Total has now bought into the block, and following an additional 2 wells to be drilled by Apache, will take over as operator of the block.
Says Lars Mangal, CEO TOTALTEC, “The offshore licensing block structure and maritime borders are, of course necessary for Guyana and Suriname to manage their relationship. However, nature was there first, by millions of years, and developed oil and gas reservoirs with no concept of borders. Successfully developing ‘shared reservoirs’ will require a culture of cooperation, where data and subsurface understanding can ensure optimal development and sharing of these resources.”
The Maka Central-1 well is the success Suriname needed to begin its journey as an oil producing nation (although it has had land activity for some time). Whilst Suriname has a higher GDP than Guyana–in particular following the 2016/2017 economic slump– the political challenges of developing a sustainable and transparent energy industry are similar.
Many of the Suriname offshore blocks have now been apportioned - ExxonMobil, Kosmos, Petronas, Tullow and Statoil have all taken up operatorships. The shallow water blocks closer to shore are under ownership of Suriname’s national oil company, Staatsolie. Thus far, test wells drilled closer to shore have been dry. The discoveries further offshore create new possibilities for Staatsolie’s future as the national oil company of Suriname.
About TOTALTEC
TOTALTEC Oilfield Services is focused on the success of the oil industry in Guyana for the benefit the country, its people, and partner companies. It does this through three areas: people, partnerships, and facilities. Qualified and motivated Guyanese develop through the International Petroleum & Maritime Academy. Partnerships prioritize products and services that are starting points to grow from, creating new Guyanese led companies. Examples are Guyana Shore Base, Inc. providing support to offshore operations and Jaguar Oilfield Services offering a complete range of lifting equipment and inspection services. The 94% Guyanese TOTALTEC workforce includes 8 nationalities with over 160 years of international oilfield experience. https://www.totaltec-os.com