– Stabroek Block projects will be remembered as historic deepwater developments

By Feona Morrison
BY 2027, ExxonMobil Guyana is poised to surpass the milestone of producing 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd), a significant achievement that promises to not only boost the company’s revenue but bring substantial benefits to the people of Guyana.
This is according to Vice President and Business Service Manager of ExxonMobil Guyana, Phillip Rietema, as he discussed the oil giant’s 2023 financial statement on this week’s episode of the Energy Perspective Podcast, which is produced by the Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo.

By the end of 2023, ExxonMobil, the operator and co-venturer of the lucrative Stabroek Block offshore Guyana, had made $614.6 billion in profits.
And that profit occurs at a time when the company’s annual revenue was $1.1 trillion and its overall operating expenses were estimated to be $356.1 billion.
He stated that the corporation has three other development projects—Yellowtail, Uaru and Whiptail—set to begin production in 2025, 2026, and 2027, respectively.
Each project is estimated to generate 250,000 barrels per day, bringing the total offshore oil output in Guyana to more than 1.3 million barrels per day.
This will take the company’s annual revenue to US$30 billion, Rietema noted.

“Oil produced is revenue produced as revenue to be shared amongst the people of Guyana and our shareholder group,” the official said.
He termed the earnings as “big numbers” and stated that they present an opportunity for Guyana to grow and develop. He assured that ExxonMobil has implemented strategic policies to manage the resources effectively and elaborated on the economic impact of this milestone.

“It is not just about the revenues we generate. It is what we can do with the investment dollars. Our operations are now employing over 6,000 Guyanese throughout the value chain and that grows every month. We have over 1,700 unique Guyanese businesses that are doing business in the oil and gas industry. Ten years ago, there were very few people working in the industry and very few businesses.”
The enhanced revenue streams are anticipated to support various developmental projects and initiatives aimed at improving the quality of life for Guyanese citizens.
The government has been making significant investments in key areas such as infrastructure, healthcare, and education.
Turning his attention to the gas-to-energy project, Rietema stated that it is a transformative project for the country.

The project will harness natural gas from the Stabroek Block, channelling it through a 200-kilometre pipeline to a new power plant and Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) facility at Wales, West Bank Demerara (WBD).
He explained: “The revenues are really nice but the gas-to-energy project… it is clear that that is going to impact every single individual in the country. Cheap, reliable power is really fundamental to development and you can only imagine the different businesses that are going to be coming here and looking to use that for their manufacturing, job creating et cetera.”
June 2024, marked 25 years since ExxonMobil has been in Guyana.

ExxonMobil is the operator of the offshore 6.6 million-acre Stabroek Block.
Along with its partners Hess Guyana Exploration and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana, a consortium was formed to find and exploit petroleum from the area.
ExxonMobil Guyana holds a 45 per cent stake, followed by Hess Guyana Exploration with 30 per cent and CNOOC Nexen Petroleum Guyana with 25 per cent.
According to the Vice President, the three companies have invested $6 trillion (US $30 billion) and have recovered US $20 billion thus far. He stated that they are committed to investing US $55 billion and plan to remain in business here for decades.
He highlighted that the oil contracts have made these investments possible.

In terms of profits, he stated that the people of Guyana will always receive the “lion’s share”. “About 52 per cent of the profit is for Guyana and 48 per cent for the contractor.”
He explained that 2023 was a “record year” for the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) as inflows stood at $330M. The Natural Resource Fund Act of 2019 established the NRF to manage Guyana’s natural resource wealth for the benefit of the people now and in the future, as well as for the country’s long-term growth.

Moreover, Rietema explained that Guyana’s Stabroek Block developments compete globally and are among the top deepwater projects in the world.
He stated that these projects have a competitive advantage over many others around the world due to their breakeven spread, which can survive market volatility.
“They are some of the best deepwater projects in the world. We are very proud of them. I know our chairman has said something to the effect of we expect that the Guyana projects that we are doing in Stabroek will go down as one of the greatest deepwater projects in the industry’s history,” he added.
Since the first discovery in 2015, the company has three projects—Liza 1, Liza 2 and Payara—producing over 600,000 barrels a day. The prolific Stabroek Block has solidified Guyana’s position as a major player in the global oil industry and the fastest-growing economy in the world.