Payara oil project : ExxonMobil, Hess move ahead with $9bn project in Guyanese waters

ExxonMobil and Hess have sanctioned the $9 billion Payara oil project in the Stabroek Block in Guyanese waters having secured government approval.

The final investment decision (FID) taken on the Payara development project paves the way for the Payara discovery brought into production by taking up drilling of 20 production wells and 21 injection wells at 10 drill centers.

First oil from the Payara oil project is expected to be drawn in 2024.

The offshore Guyanese oil field will produce via the Prosperity floating production, storage and offloading vessel (Prosperity FPSO) with the partners targeting an estimated resource base of nearly 600 million barrels of oil equivalent.

The Prosperity FPSO’s daily production capacity will be up to 220,000 gross barrels of oil.

ExxonMobil, Hess, and their other partner in the Stabroek Block – CNOOC, have so far made 18 discoveries in the offshore concession. Out of these, the Payara oil project is now the third development to follow after Liza phase 1 and Liza phase 2 developments.

While the phase 1 development of the Liza oil field began production late last year, phase 2 of the field is targeted to produce its first oil in early 2022.

ExxonMobil and Hess take FID on Payara oil project in Guyana. Photo courtesy of Hess Corporation.

Payara is the second discovery to have been made by the Stabroek Block partners. Announced in January 2017, it was discovered through the drilling of the Payara- 1 well, which encountered more than 95 feet of high-quality, oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs after being drilled to 18,080 feet in 6,660 feet of water.

Commenting on the Payara oil project, Liam Mallon – president of ExxonMobil Upstream Oil & Gas, said: “ExxonMobil is committed to building on the capabilities from our Liza Phase 1 and 2 offshore oil developments as we sanction the Payara field and responsibly develop Guyana’s natural resources.

“We continue to prioritize high-potential prospects in close proximity to discoveries and maximize value for our partners, which includes the people of Guyana.”

The gross production capacity from the three oil projects in the Stabroek Block is estimated to reach around 560,000 barrels of oil per day in 2024, said Hess.

John Hess – CEO of Hess, commenting on the Payara oil project, said: “We are excited to sanction our third oil development on the Stabroek Block.

“We thank the Government of Guyana for their support and look forward to realizing the full potential of this world class resource.”

The net share of Hess’ development costs after removing the pre-sanction costs and FPSO purchase cost is likely to be around $1.8 billion. Through Hess Guyana Exploration, the company has a 30% stake in the Stabroek Block, while ExxonMobil’s affiliate Esso Exploration and Production Guyana has an operating stake of 45%, and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana has a stake of 25%.