The oil sector in Guyana and the Gulf of Mexico witnessed the announcement of two new oil discoveries by the leading American Hess Corp., and the German Wintershall Dea.
And Hess Corp announced a new oil discovery in the “Lancet Fish 1” area in the Stabroek block off the coast of the small Latin state of Guyana located on the northern coast of South America, according to Reuters.
Wintershall Dea (Germany’s largest oil and gas producer) also announced a new oil discovery off the coast of Mexico, according to Offshore Engineer.
The two oil discoveries are the latest discoveries announced by international oil companies around the world during the past 24 hours, according to the specialized energy platform.
An oil discovery in the Gulf of Mexico
Germany’s Wintershall Dea estimates the reserves in the new oil discovery off the coast of Mexico to be between 200 and 300 million barrels of oil equivalent.
The discovery, named Cannes, is located in block 30 of the Conica Salina shallow waters in the vicinity of the Sorest Basin off the coast of Mexico.
The discovery is shared by a consortium that includes Scotland-based Harbor Energy and Malaysia’s Sapura Energy, while Germany’s Wintershall Dea is leading the consortium, according to the specialized energy platform.
This is the first oil discovery led by the German Wintershall Dea company in Mexico since 2018, and the consortium is expected to submit a detailed report on the new oil discovery before the end of July 2023, in preparation for making a final investment decision on it.
An oil discovery in Guyana
As for the American Hess Corp., it announced its new oil discovery in the vicinity of the Stabroek Square in Guyana, within the framework of an alliance that has existed in the small Latin country of a million people since 2015.
This alliance is led by the American giant ExxonMobil, along with Hess Corp. and China’s SinoC, according to the specialized energy platform.
The Stabroek block, in the vicinity of which the new oil discovery occurred, is the largest extraction site discovered by a foreign consortium in Guyana to date.
The square is located about 200 square kilometers – approximately – from the country’s coast, on an area of 6.6 million acres, and Exxon Mobil acquires a share equal to 45%, while Hess Corp owns 30%, and the Chinese company Sinooc acquires 25%.
11 billion barrels
The ExxonMobil consortium and Hess Corp. estimate the recoverable volume of crude oil from Guyana at 11 billion barrels, subject to increase as new exploration deepens, according to the specialized energy platform.
The oil production areas in Guyana are currently concentrated in the main offshore Lisa field within the Great Stabroek block, with a production capacity that has gradually increased, to reach 390,000 barrels of oil per day since August 2022, according to what was monitored by the specialized energy platform.
The ExxonMobil and Hess Corp consortium expects to establish a third phase in the Lisa offshore field, aiming to increase production to 750,000 barrels per day by 2025.
Alliance plans until 2030
The alliance also plans to start production of a third oil project in Guyana called “Bayra” before the end of 2023, in parallel with ambitious plans to start production from a fourth project called “Yellow Wattle” in 2025.
The alliance has also been seeking for months to obtain environmental licenses to launch plans for a fifth project called “Yaro” by 2030, as part of a larger plan aimed at doubling oil production in Guyana to one million barrels per day, according to the specialized energy platform.
Guyana has been competing with Trinidad and Tobago and a number of Latin American and Caribbean countries over oil and gas production and attracting foreign companies to the sector for years.
The Shell-BP alliance has a large presence in Trinidad and Tobago, while the ExxonMobil and Hess Corp alliance has more influence in rival Guyana.
The competition between the major international oil companies stimulated other less well-known companies to enter the oil and gas sector in Latin American countries, but these companies are still testing their feet in the country.
Possible oil discovery in Trinidad
In this context, the Canadian company “Touchstone Exploration” announced an oil discovery in a private exploration area in Trinidad and Tobago, but it has not yet confirmed its suitability for a wide commercial advertisement, according to the specialized “oil now” website.
The Canadian company made the discovery during initial production tests at the Royston X1 well in the Ortwer onshore area, according to the Specialized Energy platform.
The company conducted 5 tests on this well during the past period, and is preparing to conduct 4 more tests during the month of May 2023, to find out more certain results regarding the new oil discovery in Trinidad and Tobago.
Touchstone Exploration manages this well with an 80% acquisition rate, in alliance with Nigerian Heritage Petroleum Limited, which acquires 20%, according to the specialized energy platform.
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