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Petronas, ExxonMobil Ink Deal with Suriname on Potential Gas Development

by Jov Onsat|Rigzone Staff | Friday, March 08, 2024

Petroliam Nasional Bhd. (Petronas) and Exxon Mobil Corp. have agreed to further explore a potential gas production area offshore Suriname where the leaseholders had declared a gas discovery, albeit a commercially unattractive one, the South American country’s national oil and gas company said.
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Petronas Makes Another Oil Discovery in Suriname

by Jov Onsat|Rigzone Staff|Tuesday, November 07, 2023

Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) made an oil discovery in a Suriname block co-owned with Exxon Mobil Corp., the Malaysian state-owned company has announced.

The Roystonea-1 exploration well in Block 52, operated by Petronas with a 50 percent stake, was drilled to 5,315 meters (17,437.66 feet), it said in a press release.

Drilling “encountered several oil-bearing Campanian sandstone reservoir packages”, Petronas added in the announcement on its website. The well sits about 185 meters (114.95 miles) off the coast of the Caribbean country.

It is the second discovery on Block 52, where ExxonMobil holds a 50 percent stake, after the Sloanea-1 exploration well. Sloanea-1 is Petronas’ first discovery in Suriname, the company said in a news release announcing the breakthrough December 11, 2020.

“Further evaluation is being undertaken to determine the full extent of this discovery and its potential development synergy with the Sloanea-1 discovery made in 2020 within the same block”, Petronas said of Roystonea-1.
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PETRONAS Makes Oil Discovery in Suriname's Offshore Block 52

édité le 02/11/2023 - europetrole

PETRONAS’ subsidiary, PETRONAS Suriname E&P B.V. (PETRONAS Suriname E&P), has made an oil discovery at the Roystonea-1 exploration well in Suriname’s Block 52.

The well, located about 185 kilometres offshore in water depth of 904 metres, was successfully drilled to a total depth of 5,315 metres. It also encountered several oil-bearing Campanian sandstone reservoir packages. Further evaluation is being undertaken to determine the full extent of this discovery and its potential development synergy with the Sloanea-1 discovery made in 2020 within the same block.

PETRONAS Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Upstream, Datuk Adif Zulkifli said, “PETRONAS views the Roystonea-1 oil discovery as a positive development towards realising our differentiated barrel strategy for international upstream ventures, focusing on a material discovery with minimal contaminants.”

PETRONAS Vice President of Exploration, Mohd Redhani Abdul Rahman added, “The success of Roystonea-1 is expected to drive further exploration for commercially viable hydrocarbon resources in the surrounding areas. PETRONAS will continue to work closely with the host authority, Staatsolie, and partners to unlock Suriname's hydrocarbon potential. We look forward to implementing safe and successful future exploration programmes together.”

Block 52, which covers an area of 4,749 square kilometres, is located north of the coast of Paramaribo, Suriname’s capital city, within the prospective Suriname-Guyana basin. PETRONAS Suriname E&P is the operator of Block 52 with a 50 per cent participating interest.

In addition to Block 52, PETRONAS Suriname E&P operates Block 48 with 100 per cent participating interest. It is also a partner with 30 per cent non-operating participating interest in the adjacent Block 53 where the Baja-1 oil discovery was made in 2022.

This discovery is a result of PETRONAS’ ongoing efforts towards ensuring energy security to meet the growing global energy demands.

Le bloc offshore 58 du Suriname est situé à proximité de l’immense zone d’ExxonMobil dans l’ouest du Guyana et devrait devenir le premier projet pétrolier offshore du pays.

« L’appréciation des deux principales découvertes de pétrole, Sapakara south et Krabdagu, s’est achevée avec succès en août […] et a confirmé des ressources cumulées de près de 700 millions de barils pour les deux champs », indique le communiqué. « Ces réserves, situées entre 100 et 1 000 mètres de profondeur, seront produites par un système de puits sous-marins reliés à un FPSO (NDLR : unité flottante de production, stockage et chargement) situé à 150 km de la côte du Suriname, d’une capacité de 200 000 barils par jour », souligne le communiqué de Totalénergies. « Ce projet représente un investissement d’environ 9 milliards de dollars » (8,3 milliards d’euros).

TotalEnergies annonce un projet pétrolier de 200.000 b/j au Suriname

AFP le 13 sept. 2023

TotalEnergies va lancer des études de développement d'un grand projet pétrolier de 9 milliards de dollars et de 200.000 barils/jour au large du Suriname, avec "pour objectif" de prendre une décision finale d'investissement "fin 2024", a annoncé son PDG Patrick Pouyanné à Paramaribo, capitale de ce petit pays du nord-est de l'Amérique du sud.

"Les études de développement du Bloc 58 que nous lançons aujourd'hui constituent une étape majeure vers la mise en valeur des ressources pétrolières du Suriname", a affirmé M. Pouyanné, après une rencontre avec le président surinamien, Chan Santokhi, et le PDG de la compagnie pétrolière nationale Staatsolie, Annand Jaguesar.

"La décision finale d'investissement" (FID qui décide de l'exploitation ou non) est "attendue pour la fin de l'année 2024 avec un objectif de production en 2028", selon un communiqué de TotalEnergies.

Ancienne colonie néerlandaise de 600.000 habitants, le Suriname est plongé dans une grave crise économique, avec une inflation galopante et une dette extérieure qui a explosé. Le pays attend avec impatience l'exploitation de réserves de pétrole qui s'annoncent importantes et pourraient le transformer en El Dorado.

Son petit voisin le Guyana a déjà commencé à exploiter ses gisements, qui en font le premier pays au monde en réserves de pétrole per capita.

Le bloc offshore 58 du Suriname est situé à proximité de l'immense zone d'ExxonMobil dans l'ouest du Guyana et devrait devenir le premier projet pétrolier offshore du Suriname.

Selon le communiqué, le pétrolier français est "l'opérateur du Bloc 58, avec une participation de 50% au côté" de l'américain "APA Corporation".

"L'appréciation des deux principales découvertes de pétrole, Sapakara South et Krabdagu, s'est achevée avec succès en août (...) et a confirmé des ressources cumulées de près de 700 millions de barils pour les deux champs", est-il ajouté.

"Ces réserves, situées entre 100 m et 1.000 m de profondeur, seront produites par un système de puits sous-marins reliés à un FPSO (unité flottante de production, stockage et chargement) situé à 150 km de la côte du Suriname, d'une capacité de 200.000 barils par jour. Ce projet représente un investissement d'environ 9 milliards de dollars", souligne le communiqué.

Il est très probable que Staatsolie utilise ses droits de participation, qui peuvent atteindre 20%.

TotalEnergies et ses partenaires détiennent également des contrats de partage de production sur les blocs 6 et 8 en eaux peu profondes avec Staatsolie, près de la frontière avec le Guyana. D'une profondeur comprise entre 30 et 50 mètres, les blocs 6 et 8 sont adjacents au bloc 58. TotalEnergies exploitera les deux blocs avec une participation de 40%, aux côtés de QatarEnergy (20%) et de Paradise Oil Company (POC), une filiale de Staatsolie (40%).

TotalEnergies signe des contrats au Suriname

AOF 15/05/2023

TotalEnergies et ses partenaires ont signé les contrats de partage de production des blocs 6 et 8 avec Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname, la compagnie nationale du Suriname. Les blocs 6 et 8 ont été attribués à TotalEnergies dans le cadre de l’appel d’offres offshore conventionnel 2020/2021. TotalEnergies sera opérateur des deux blocs avec une participation de 40%, aux côtés de QatarEnergy (20%) et Paradise Oil Company (POC) (40%), filiale de Staatsolie.

Situés au sud du domaine offshore du Suriname près de la frontière avec le Guyana, à des profondeurs comprises entre 30 et 50 mètres, les blocs 6 et 8 jouxtent le bloc 58 où plusieurs découvertes ont été faites et où des forages d'appréciation sont en cours.

QatarEnergy enters Suriname offshore exploration

europetrole le 09/05/2023 - Plus de news de "QatarEnergy" - Voir la fiche entreprise de "QatarEnergy"

QatarEnergy has entered into two Production Sharing Contracts for Blocks 6 & 8 offshore the Republic of Suriname, following successful bids in these blocks, as previously announced in June 2021.

Pursuant to the signed agreements, QatarEnergy will own a 20% working interest in both blocks, where licensing of the new 3D seismic and associated exploration activities are planned. The remaining working interest is shared equally between TotalEnergies (Operator) and Staatsolie’s affiliate, Paradise Oil Company.

Commenting on the signing of the agreements, His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, said: “We are pleased to have concluded our entry into Blocks 6 and 8 along with our partners, TotalEnergies and Staatsolie, and look forward to commencing exploration in this promising basin.”

His Excellency Minister Al-Kaabi added: "I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Surinamese authorities, Staatsolie, and our strategic partner TotalEnergies for their excellent commitment and support that resulted in the signing of these agreements.”

The contracts, and other key agreements, were signed on behalf of QatarEnergy by Mr. Ali Abdulla Al-Mana, the Manager of International Upstream & Exploration during a ceremony hosted by Staatsolie, Suriname’s State Oil Company in Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname.
Located in the Southern part of offshore Suriname, the adjacent Blocks 6 and 8 lie immediately South of Block 58 in shallow waters, with depths ranging between 40 and 65 meters.

Baja-1 Discovery Important Milestone for Petronas

by Andreas Exarheas|Rigzone Staff|Monday, September 12, 2022

Petronas Exploration Vice President Mohd Redhani Abdul Rahman has dubbed the Baja-1 discovery in Suriname an “important milestone” for the company.

“The discovery at Baja-1 well is an important milestone for Petronas in unlocking deepwater hydrocarbon resource from our exploration ventures,” Rahman said in a Petronas statement.

“We are encouraged by this achievement and will remain focused on growing our international portfolio, especially in the Americas,” he added in the statement.

“This achievement is a testament to the combined expertise and experience of all joint venture partners and we look forward to more exciting milestones as we progress further,” Rahman continued.

On September 9, Petronas confirmed the oil find at the well, which is located in Suriname’s offshore Block 53. The company noted that post-drill evaluation is ongoing to firm up the potential of the discovered resource.

Petronas Suriname E&P B.V. (PSEPBV) holds a 30 percent participating interest in Block 53, which is operated by APA Suriname Corporation LDC with a 45 percent interest, with CEPSA Suriname, S.L. holding the remaining 25 percent.

Last month, APA Corporation announced that Baja-1 was drilled to a depth of 17,356 feet and encountered 112 feet of net oil pay in a single interval within the Campanian. The company noted at the time that preliminary fluid and log analysis indicates light oil with a gas-oil ratio (GOR) of 1,600 to 2,200 standard cubic feet per barrel.

“Our success at Baja marks the sixth oil discovery we have participated in offshore Suriname, and the first on Block 53,” John J. Christmann, APA CEO and president, stated back in August.

“This result confirms our geologic model for the Campanian in the area and helps to de-risk other prospects in the southern portion of both Blocks 53 and 58,” he added.

APA Corporation Announces First Discovery in Block 53 Offshore Suriname; Provides Update on Block 58 Operations

le 23/08/2022

APA Corporation announced an oil discovery offshore Suriname at Baja-1 in Block 53 and provided an update on recent drilling operations at Dikkop-1 in Block 58.

Block 53
Baja-1 was drilled to a depth of 5,290 meters (17,356 feet) and encountered 34 meters (112 feet) of net oil pay in a single interval within the Campanian. Preliminary fluid and log analysis indicates light oil with a gas-oil ratio (GOR) of 1,600 to 2,200 standard cubic feet per barrel, in good quality reservoir. The discovery at Baja-1 is a down-dip lobe of the same depositional system as the Krabdagu discovery, 11.5 kilometers to the west in Block 58. Evaluation of open-hole well logs, cores and reservoir fluids is ongoing.

“Our success at Baja marks the 6th oil discovery we have participated in offshore Suriname, and the first on Block 53,” said John J. Christmann, APA CEO and president. “This result confirms our geologic model for the Campanian in the area and helps to de-risk other prospects in the southern portion of both Blocks 53 and 58.”

APA recently received regulatory approval regarding an amendment to the Block 53 Production Sharing Contract (PSC), which provides options to extend the exploration period of the PSC by up to four years. The company is currently progressing the formalization of the election of the first one-year extension, for which all work commitments are complete.

APA is operator and holds a 45% working interest in Block 53, with Petronas holding a 30% working interest and CEPSA holding a 25% working interest. Baja-1 was drilled using the Noble Gerry de Souza in water depths of approximately 1,140 meters (3,740 feet). The drillship will mobilize to Block 58 following the completion of current operations, where it will drill the Awari exploration prospect, approximately 27 kilometers (north) of the Maka Central discovery.

Block 58
APA also announced that operations have concluded on the Dikkop exploration well in Block 58. The well encountered water-bearing sandstones in the targeted interval and has been plugged and abandoned. TotalEnergies is the operator with a 50% working interest, and APA holds the remaining 50% working interest. The drillship Maersk Valiant will be moving to the Sapakara field to drill a second appraisal well at Sapakara South, where the joint venture conducted a successful flow test late last year.

Suriname Prepares Major Oil Block Offering

By Irina Slav - Jun 30, 2022

Suriname is preparing to tender some 60 percent of its offshore blocks over the next 12 months, Reuters reported this week, citing a vice-president of the state oil firm, Staatsolie.

The first tender is planned for the fourth quarter of this year, Glenn Corrie told Reuters.

Suriname is the neighbor to Guyana, the hottest new oil spot in the world where Exxon and Hess have made a string of discoveries in recent years totaling billions of crude oil in untapped reserves. Exxon eyes production of 1.2 million bpd from just one block in Guyana by 2027.

The Guyana deposits are part of the Guyana-Suriname Basin, which Staatsolie's Corrie called "the hottest basin in the world", adding that "Our objective over the course of the next 12 months is to license the next round of all that acreage and put it into the hands of operators."

Hopes are running high, but Suriname has yet to replicate the Guyana boom. Still, TotalEnergies earlier this year announced that it had made a significant discovery off the shore of Suriname—the fifth in the country. The company has yet to make its final investment decision on the project after appraisal drilling.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the Guyana-Suriname Basin could hold up to 32.6 billion barrels of undiscovered oil resources, underscoring the tremendous hydrocarbon potential that the countries share. It is estimated that Suriname's offshore oil discoveries held recoverable oil resources of nearly 2 billion barrels as of the end of 2021.

Suriname last year held a shallow water tender that saw three exploration blocks awarded to TotalEnergies, Chevron, and Qatar Petroleum, which partnered with the French supermajor on two blocks. Now, plans appear to be much more ambitious, especially after another tender, scheduled for October last year, failed to result in any winning bids.

Staatsolie, Chevron sign PSC for block offshore Suriname

April 28, 2022


This map shows the shallow offshore west area with blocks on offer.

Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname N.V. and Chevron Exploration Suriname Ltd. are expanding their cooperation in shallow offshore Suriname. A production sharing contract (PSC) for offshore Block 7 was signed for this purpose on April 26.

With the signing of the PSC, Chevron (80% participating interest) has obtained exploration, development and production rights in Block 7. Staatsolie has a 20% participation share through its subsidiary Paradise Oil Co. N.V. (POC). The cooperation between POC and Chevron was confirmed with the signing of the joint operating agreement in which the arrangements between the partners are laid down.

The agreements enable Staatsolie to play an active role in the block partnership from day one. The costs in the exploration phase will be carried by Chevron. The exploration period, as set out in Chevron's PSC, will last eight years, divided into three phases.

The PSC also states that Chevron should give preference to materials, services and products offered by Surinamese companies. The condition is that they meet the quality, price and other commercial requirements. In this way, local participation within the offshore oil industry is stimulated.

Block 7 is in the west of the shallow offshore area and has a size of 1,867 sq km.

In October 2021, Staatsolie and Chevron signed a PSC for Block 5, in which Staatsolie has the right to a 40% participation through POC. In December 2021, Chevron farmed out one-third of its 60% stake in Block 5 to Shell (KE Suriname BV). POC retained its 40% stake as a non-executive partner.

TotalEnergies: découverte "significative" de pétrole et gaz au large du Suriname

AFPparue le 21 févr. 2022

TotalEnergies a annoncé lundi une "nouvelle découverte significative de pétrole et de gaz" au large des côtés du Suriname, où le groupe détient plusieurs permis, et s'est dit encouragée à "poursuivre" sa "stratégie d'exploration" dans ce secteur "prolifique".

Un forage sur le bloc 58 a atteint une "profondeur d'eau d'environ 780 mètres" et permis de rencontrer "environ 90 mètres d'huile légère", indique dans un communiqué TotalEnergies, qui opère à parts égales sur ce bloc avec la société américaine APA.

En conséquence, le groupe français se dit encouragé à "poursuivre (sa) stratégie d'exploration et d'appréciation de ce bloc 58 prolifique afin d'identifier des ressources suffisantes d'ici la fin de l'année 2022 pour un premier développement pétrolier".

TotalEnergies détient plusieurs permis d'exploration au large du Suriname, dont celui du bloc 58, où plusieurs découvertes "importantes" ont été annoncées depuis 2020.

L'an dernier, l'Agence internationale de l'énergie (AIE) a de son côté frappé les esprits en recommandant d'abandonner tout nouveau projet d'exploration de combustibles fossiles (pétrole, gaz, charbon), dans le cadre de sa feuille de route pour atteindre la neutralité carbone mondiale à l'horizon 2050.

Shell Enters Chevron-Operated Block Offshore Suriname

by Bojan Lepic|Rigzone Staff|Tuesday, December 21, 2021

Supermajors Chevron and Shell have signed a farm-out agreement for Block 5, located offshore Suriname.

Suriname’s national oil company Staatsolie said that Chevron’s Suriname arm transferred to Shell a third of its 60 percent interest in Block 5 (20 percent) for which it has a production sharing agreement.

Namely, Staatsolie signed a 30-year production sharing contract (PSC) with Chevron for the block in October this year. Block 5 is located in the shallow offshore area and has a size of 863 square miles.

Chevron gained exploration, development, and production rights by entering into this PSC. This deal marks Staatsolie’s first participation in offshore activities as a partner.

Following Shell’s farm-in, Staatsolie’s wholly-owned subsidiary – Paradise Oil Company – has retained its non-operated participating interest of 40 percent. But no other specific details of the new deal were disclosed.

It is worth noting that the farm-out deal was signed by Chevron’s Senior Commercial Advisor for Global Exploration Kevin Peters, Upstream Director at Staatsolie Rekha Bissumbhar, General Manager of Staatsolie Mike Resomardono, and Country Manager External and Government Relations for Shell in Suriname Annand Jagesar.

“Staatsolie welcomes the participation of a renowned party such as Shell in Block 5. The farm-out underlines the great interest there is in the offshore area of Suriname,” Staatsolie said.

“An interest that has been fueled by the recent major discoveries, but certainly also by Suriname’s good work in presenting prospects in the offshore blocks to the oil and gas world,” it added.

Staatsolie described Shell’s participation in Block 5 as an opportunity to increase the chance of more exploration successes in the Surinamese offshore by adding more expertise in the analysis of the block.

Concerning other Suriname and Chevron-related news, the supermajor and a consortium between TotalEnergies and QatarEnergy submitted winning bids for the relevant blocks offered in the Suriname Shallow Offshore Bid Round 2020/​2021 which closed for bidding on April 30.

This meant that Chevron obtain a stake in Block 5. Chevron agreed to pay a signing bonus of $30.88 million and is expected to cover the block’s exploration costs in the first phase that will last six years, divided into three two-year phases.

Under the PSC, Chevron should give preference to materials, services, and products offered by Surinamese companies under the condition that they meet the quality, price, and other commercial requirements.

The joint venture between TotalEnergies and QatarEnergy acquired interests in Block 6 and Block 8.

After Five Discoveries TotalEnergies Drills Duster Off Suriname

by Bojan Lepic|Rigzone Staff|Thursday, September 30, 2021

French energy giant TotalEnergies has failed to find commercial amounts of hydrocarbons with its latest Suriname offshore well.

After TotalEnergies made multiple discoveries in Block 58 offshore Suriname without a single miss, its partner in the block – APA Corporation – announced that its latest well came up dry.

Drilling of the latest Keskesi South-1 well was preceded by Maka Central, Sapakara West, Kwaskwasi, Keskesi East-1, and Sapakara South-1 discoveries.

APA Corporation said in an announcement that the Keskesi South-1 appraisal well encountered non-commercial quantities of hydrocarbons and the well has been plugged and abandoned. The well was drilled approximately 4 miles from the Keskesi East-1 discovery well.

“The first appraisal well at Keskesi was a substantial step-out designed to assess the southern extent of the feature”, Tracey K. Henderson, APA’s senior vice president of exploration, said.

“This location had the potential to confirm a very large resource in place if connected to the reservoir sands in the discovery well. However, suitable reservoir quality sands were not developed in the Campanian target at the Keskesi South-1 location. Data gathered from the well will be used to calibrate our geologic model and inform the next steps for Keskesi appraisal”.

APA Corporation added that the Maersk Developer rig has now moved to the Sapakara South-1 well, where it will conduct a flow test of the previously announced appraisal success.

Following the completion of the Sapakara South-1 flow test, the exploration program will continue with the next exploration well targeting the Krabdagoe prospect east of Keskesi. TotalEnergies also has the Maersk Valiant currently drilling Bonboni, the first exploration prospect in the northern portion of Block 58.

Block 58 encompasses 1.4 million acres and is in the early phases of exploration and appraisal. APA has participated in four exploration discoveries and one appraisal success offshore Suriname in the past two years. The company holds a 50 percent working interest in the block while the operator TotalEnergies holds the remaining 50 percent.

In addition to its 50 percent working interest on Block 58, APA also holds a 45 percent working interest in Block 53, where it plans to drill an exploration well in 2022.

TotalEnergies annonce un nouveau succès en offshore sur le Bloc 58 au Suriname

le 29/07/2021

TotalEnergies et APA Corporation ont trouvé de l’huile lors du forage du puits Sapakara South-1, localisé au sein du Bloc 58 au large des côtes du Suriname. Cette annonce fait suite aux précédentes découvertes réalisées sur Maka Central, Sapakara West, Kwaskwasi et Keskesi.

Situé à 4 kilomètres au sud-est de la découverte de Sapakara West-1, Sapakara South-1 a été foré à une profondeur d'eau d'environ 850 mètres. Sapakara South a rencontré 30 mètres d'huile dans un réservoir campano-maastrichtien de bonne qualité.

« Nous sommes heureux de ce nouveau succès sur Sapakara South-1, très similaire à celui annoncé sur Keskesi plus tôt cette année. Ces résultats positifs répétés confirment notre stratégie qui vise de grands volumes de ressources à faibles coûts de développement. » a déclaré Kevin McLachlan, directeur Exploration de TotalEnergies. « En tant qu'opérateur du prolifique bloc 58, cela nous encourage à poursuivre notre effort, conjointement avec notre partenaire, pour augmenter la base de ressources tout en menant les opérations d'appréciation destinées à justifier un développement pétrolier commercial. »

Les opérations de forage se poursuivront avec le navire de forage Maersk Valiant. TotalEnergies est l'opérateur, avec une participation de 50%, et Apache détient une participation de 50%. Après l'achèvement du puits Sapakara South-1, l’appareil de forage se déplacera pour forer le puits Bonboni - 1 dans le bloc 58.