ONE GUYANA FPSO expected to come online in late summer

Guyana’s offshore oil industry is set to reach another production milestone as the ONE GUYANA FPSO prepares its first cargo for shipment.

As reported by Reuters, the inaugural shipment of the newly branded “Golden Arrowhead” crude grade is slated for late August or early September, marking a critical milestone for the ExxonMobil-led consortium that includes Hess Corp. and CNOOC.

The ONE GUYANA FPSO will be the fourth FPSO operating in the prolific Stabroek block, and it will operate in ExxonMobil’s Yellowtail field. The vessel is designed to produce 250,000 barrels of oil per day, with an associated gas treatment capacity of 450 MMcf/d and a water injection capacity of 300,000 b/d.

The FPSO is expected to push Guyana’s total offshore production capacity beyond 900,000 bbl/d. The first cargo will reportedly consist of approximately one million barrels, which the consortium plans to market via a public tender in the coming weeks.

After that, at least two more FSPOs are expected to come online in the near term. One of these is ExxonMobil’s Whiptail project, which was sanctioned in April 2024. It is expected to go onstream in 2027 (250,000 bbl/d). ExxonMobil has also submitted its plan for the seventh field development project, Hammerhead, to the government of Guyana. This FPSO’s planned capacity will be lower at about 150,000 bbl/d, with first production expected in 2029.

Guyana is now considered to be a critical supplier to the global petroleum market and is on pace to become the world’s leading per capita oil producer, with output forecast to surpass 1 MMbbl/d by the end of 2027.