French major Total who recently chose the greener name of TotalEnergies does not seem to be ready to give up oil exploration.
A consortium including Qatar Petroleum has been awarded two offshore blocks in Suriname, under Production Sharing Contracts as part of the recent Suriname offshore bid round.
The winning bids in the competitive round were announced by Suriname’s State Oil Company, Staatsolie. A consortium comprising of Qatar Petroleum (20%), TotalEnergies (Operator – 40%) and Staatsolie (40%) were awarded the right to explore shallow water blocks 6 and 8, which are immediately adjacent to the prolific Block 58 discoveries.
Commenting on this occasion, His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum, said, “We are pleased to be awarded exploration rights in blocks 6 and 8, and this represents Qatar Petroleum’s first entry into Suriname. This successful result also increases our presence in the Guyana-Suriname Basin and further strengthens Qatar Petroleum’s footprint in Latin America, marking yet another successful step towards realizing our international growth ambitions.”
His Excellency Minister Al-Kaabi added, “I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Surinamese authorities for a comprehensive and efficient tender process, as well as our strategic partner, TotalEnergies, for their excellent cooperation in achieving this result.”
Located in the southern part of offshore Suriname, close to the border with Guyana, the adjacent blocks 6 and 8 lie immediately south of block 58 in shallow waters, with depths ranging between 30 and 65 meters. The two blocks cover a combined area of approximately 2,750 square kilometers.
(Source: Qatar Petroleum – Maersk Developer semi-submersible hired in January 2021 by Total to conduct exploration drilling offshore Suriname)