Petronas and ExxonMobil have found oil offshore Suriname, raising potential for a joint development with a find from 2020.
The Malaysian company said it had found oil at the Roystonea-1 well, in Block 52. It drilled the well 185 km offshore, in 904 metres of water. The well reached a total depth of 5,315 metres.
Petronas said it had found several oil-bearing Campanian sandstone reservoir packages, but did not provide more details.
The company said it was carrying out an evaluation of the find to determine its full extent. Petronas said it may have “potential development synergy” with the Sloanea-1 find, drilled in 2020.
“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,” said the company’s head of upstream Datuk Adif Zulkifli.
Vice president of exploration Mohd Redhani Abdul Rahman said the success would “drive further exploration for commercially viable hydrocarbon resources in the surrounding areas”.
Block 52 coves 4,749 square km, in the Suriname-Guyana Basin. Petronas is the operator with a 50% stake, while Exxon has the remaining 50%.
Petronas also has a 100% stake in Block 52 and a 30% stake in Block 53. APA Corp. announced the Baja-1 oil discovery in Block 53 in August 2022.
State-owned Staatsolie said it was “extremely pleased” with the results from Roystonea-1.
“Discoveries have now been made in several blocks, contributing to the development of a promising offshore oil and gas sector in Suriname,” it said.
The Noble Discoverer has been under contract with Petronas since August. This month, it is due to move to Colombia to carry out work for Ecopetrol until January.
Exxon has four Noble drillships under contract in Guyana, running until mid-2027.
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