–as gov’t officially inks PSA with QatarEnergy, TotalEnergies, PETRONAS

GUYANA has officially sealed a new Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) with a consortium comprising TotalEnergies, QatarEnergy, and PETRONAS for the exploration of Shallow-Water Block S4, marking another major milestone in the nation’s energy evolution.

The signing, which took place on Tuesday at the Pegasus Corporate Suites, comes with a US$15 million signing bonus, a figure that surpasses the previous US$10 million ceiling for shallow-water blocks. The funds will be deposited directly into the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) within 15 days.
“This US$15 million for the exploration of the shallow-water block will be paid directly into the Natural Resource Fund. It is gazetted for everyone to see, and the Minister of Finance has an obligation to submit quarterly inflows to the National Assembly,” Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat confirmed during the ceremony.
The agreement represents the first to be executed under Guyana’s updated legislative framework, introduced following the country’s inaugural oil block auction in 2022.
It also marks PETRONAS’ entry into Guyana’s side of the basin, shared with Suriname, and the return of TotalEnergies and QatarEnergy, which had previously exited the Orinduik Block in 2024.
Under the consortium structure, TotalEnergies serves as operator with a 40 per cent stake, while QatarEnergy holds 35 per cent and PETRONAS 25 per cent. The S4 block covers approximately 1,788 square kilometres, located between 50 and 100 kilometres off Guyana’s coast in water depths ranging from 30 to 100 metres.
These terms differ from the Stabroek Block Petroleum Sharing Agreement (PSA).
The new PSA introduces modernised fiscal terms—a 10 per cent royalty rate, a 10 per cent corporate tax, and a reduced cost recovery ceiling, while profit sharing remains an even 50/50 split between the government and contractors.
Bharrat described the arrangement as “a win-win for Guyana and our partners,” adding that it reflects the government’s transparent, sustainable, and investor-friendly framework.
“Guyana is one of the few countries in the world that has actually moved from a Local Content Policy to a Local Content Legislation defying the odds of many when they said that legislation will close down the oil and gas sector in Guyana and will not attract the big players….,” Bharrat asserted.

CONSORTIUM COMMITS TO RAPID EXPLORATION
Representing TotalEnergies, Daniel Larrañaga, Vice President of Exploration for the Americas, expressed confidence in the project’s potential and said the consortium intends to move swiftly into exploration.
“Exploration is about perseverance, it is about technical excellence, it is about strategic partnership, and we have all those elements here today in S4. We have had some experiences as non-operators in the Guyana basin since about 10 years,” he added.
Larrañaga noted too that the consortium considers the contract terms fair and standard and is pleased with both the fiscal and non-fiscal terms.
While speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the signing, he said exploration activities will be conducted in keeping with Guyana’s regulatory requirements and international best practices for environmental protection and resource management.
He noted that seismic data acquisition will take about a year, with the entire exploration period lasting about five years and keeping with the country’s local content laws, the consortium, he asserted, will work with local contractors.
With an estimated 11 billion barrels of oil equivalent already confirmed in the Stabroek Block, Guyana’s offshore basin continues to command international attention as one of the world’s fastest-growing super basins.
Minister Bharrat underscored that this latest deal demonstrates continued global confidence in Guyana’s governance of its hydrocarbon sector and its ability to attract top-tier investors while maintaining environmental integrity and equitable benefit-sharing.