TotalEnergies calls Guyana-Suriname basin among world's most active as low-cost output grows

Published: 2026-05-11 03:50:09 ET XOM

Published on 05/11/2026 at 03:50 am EDT

The Guyana-Suriname basin remains one of the world's most active petroleum provinces, delivering low-cost, low-carbon-intensity oil that continues to attract major investment, TotalEnergies Area Exploration Manager Jim Geary said at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston on May 6, OilNOW reported.

'This basin is clearly one of the most active petroleum basins in the world,' Geary said, attributing its rise to ExxonMobil's 2015 Liza discovery offshore Guyana and APA Corporation's 2020 Maka discovery offshore Suriname. 'What makes this basin world class is the prolific source rock, the high quality reservoir units. Its advantaged barrels in this basin — they're low cost, low carbon intensity.'

Guyana currently has four developments in production in the Stabroek Block, with ExxonMobil and co-venturers advancing the Uaru and Whiptail projects. In Suriname, TotalEnergies and APA Corporation are developing the GranMorgu project in Block 58, targeting first oil in 2028.

TotalEnergies is also expanding its own Guyana position through the shallow water S4 block, awarded in a recent licensing round. Geary said the company plans to acquire more than 2,000 square kilometres of seismic data in the first exploration phase, given the block is currently covered by only sparse two-dimensional data.