Even though it’s a ways off, Guyana’s government is getting ready for the prospect of developing gas resources with Suriname if the global corporations decide to go that route. The Government of Guyana’s draft bill, which provides a framework for pooling reserves across borders, is the most recent progress in this area. If a reservoir in Guyana extends across a neighboring nation, the governments would meet to consider the reservoir’s unity, according to the draft law on petroleum activities. According to the law, governments might exchange just a little amount of information when it was necessary to make decisions. The new model petroleum agreements that Guyana has created in accordance with the law also mention cross-border unity.
Guyana’s Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has alluded to this before. He said that when Guyana finalizes the offshore licensing round, it will start working on its gas strategy, including exploring the likelihood of joint development with Suriname. Block 58 off the coast of Suriname is where most of that country’s deep water discoveries have been made. It borders the productive ExxonMobil-owned Stabroek block off the coast of Guyana. Exxon has discovered 17 trillion cubic feet of gas in the Stabroek block, much of which is concentrated near the border with Suriname. For example, the discoveries of Pluma and Haimara are in gas fields. Likewise, the finds in Block 58 of Suriname indicate large quantities of gas.
While oil development is Exxon’s clear priority in Guyana, its president, Alistair Routledge, said earlier this year that the company is closely reviewing gas development opportunities. The unity provision is part of a series of new measures proposed by the government of Guyana as part of expanding regulation of the oil and gas sector and modernizing outdated oil laws. On June 20, 2023, a two-week consultation period on the bill began, according to the OilNow medium.
