PARAMARIBO, Suriname, CMC – The state-owned oil company, Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname NV, has signed a production sharing contract (PSC) for offshore Blocks 6 and 8 of the Suriname coast with TotalEnergies Suriname and the Qatar-owned, QatarEnergy.
Staatsolie has a 40 percent participation in Blocks 6 and 8 through its subsidiary Paradise Oil Company NV.
The three companies signed the Joint Operating Agreement (JOA) on Monday, and as outlined in the PSC, the exploration period will last six years, with a first exploration well to be drilled in the third or fourth year.
Blocks 6 and 8 are located west of the Shallow Offshore (SHO) area, south of the recent deepwater discoveries at Block 58, and north of the mainland-producing oil fields.
In 2021, the Shallow Offshore Bid Round 2020-2021 was completed, and Block 6 and Block 8 were allocated to the two foreign oil companies. These two concessions are adjacent to Block 58, where TotalEnergies and American company Apache Corporation have already made several significant oil discoveries. In 2021, PSCs were signed with Chevron and Shell for Block 5 and Block 7. Exploration activities in these blocks are underway, and the first exploratory well will be drilled in Block 5 in 2024.
Natural Resources Minister David Abiamofo, who was present at the signing, said that the government has complete confidence in the management and supervisory board of Staatsolie to make a substantial contribution to the country’s economy and the prosperity of the population.
He said the government attaches great importance to the use of local content and that it “ will closely monitor local content policies.”
Paradise Oil director, Rekha Bissumbhar, says he expects success to be achieved earlier than the six-year contractual agreement.
He said that the oil companies already have data purchased from Staatsolie at an earlier stage and that this information would be used as a basis for more extensive explorations.
Staatsolie director Annand Jagesar said that the explorations in Block 5 had progressed satisfactorily, with the first exploration well expected to be drilled next year.
He said that Block 6 and Block 8 are “below” Block 58, where lucrative oil reserves have already been found.
QatarEnergy representative, Ali Al Mana, said his company had been closely following developments in the oil sector in Suriname and is therefore looking forward to the explorations with partner TotalEnergies.
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