Gov’t welcomes 20th offshore oil discovery

See statement below from Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat on the latest oil find by ExxonMobil:

As Minister of Natural Resources with responsibility for the Petroleum Sector and on behalf of the Government of Guyana, it gives me great pleasure and honour to announce Guyana’s 20th Offshore Oil Discovery at Longtail-3 Offshore Guyana within the Stabroek Block offshore.

The Longtail-3 discovery will add to the previously announced gross discovered recoverable resource estimate for the block, which is currently estimated to be over 9 billion oil-equivalent barrels. I was advised that drilling at Longtail-3 encountered at 230 feet (70 meters), high–quality hydrocarbon–bearing reservoirs below the original Longtail-1 discovery intervals. The well is located approximately two miles (3.5 kilometres) south of the Longtail-1 well and it was drilled in more than 6,100 feet (1860 meters) of water by the Stena DrillMAX.

The Government of Guyana anticipates that this new development will further increase the potentials for more floating production storage and offloading vessels (FPSO). Additionally, this will increase the estimated recoverable resource given by the operator, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL). As such, the Ministry and the Petroleum Sector regulatory agencies will continue to work with other operators to expedite their drill programme as we seek to expand the sector.

Again, the Government of Guyana welcomes this new discovery at Longtail-3 Offshore Guyana and reinforces its commitment to the sustainable exploration and development of Guyana’s Oil and Gas Resources. This will be done in keeping with the highest level of compliance and transparency to ensure that the benefits from this sector enhance the lives of all Guyanese.