Guyana: Oil Situation

Oil is expected to start flowing from Guyana starting in 2020.

Petroleum Economist has the following update:

Guyana is anticipating the announcement of another major oil find as early as next week, the country's chief investment official said at the SPE Offshore Europe conference.

"GDP is going to double in a matter of 17 months," says Verway. "I do not believe another country in the world has experienced that speed of growth in the last century." In 2018, the country's GDP grew by 3.4pc to $3.6bn, according to the World Bank.


Talk about additional riches soon to hit this small country. The article mentions that the country is meeting with officials in Scotland and Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador to gain knowledge on how to deal with their new found wealth.

It looks like Exxon Mobile, which had drilling rights in Guyana, is also making sure they focus their efforts in Guyana as well as in the US shale patch.

From Reuters:

Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) has agreed to sell its Norwegian oil and gas assets for up to $4 billion, ending its production in a country where it started operations more than a century ago, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday. 

After a hundred years, they have better places to drill for oil.

The US military is also taking an interest in Guyana. From Express UK:

US troops have been deployed in Guyana, which is located east of Venezuela. With US allies Brazil bordering to the south and Colombia to the west, Maduro is under more pressure as a quarter of his citizens suffer in dire poverty. With Chinese and Russian influence increasing in Guyana, Trump hopes the deployment of US air force will strengthen the relationship between the two countries.

I've already written about China/Russia influence in Venezuela. It is interesting that they have growing influence in Guyana. It should also be noted that Venezuela and Guyana have disputed territory that revolves around oil. It is possible that Guyana made the first move in requesting the US military make a show in Guyana. The article notes that the US military was their to build community centers and women's shelters.

Another South America country is also hoping to strike it rich.

Via S&P Global:

Activity is also stirring in adjacent Suriname, which hopes to replicate its neighbor's success in one of the world's few emerging areas of large oil prospectivity. While there have been a number of Suriname dry holes in recent years, several operators have wells planned there on a bet that Guyana-type oil-rich rocks extend across the border.

We'll see in the next couple years if they also get a huge bump in their GDP. The concern is the quote "there have been a number of Suriname dry holes in recent years."