Report: TotalEnergies to begin new drilling in Suriname next year
Why this news matters:
- Extends exploration momentum: Confirms TotalEnergies is continuing to invest in Suriname’s high-potential but still-maturing deepwater basin.
- Impacts development pathways: New wells could support a second project or expand GranMorgu through tiebacks, shaping future project scope and costs.
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Critical for national growth: Further discoveries are key to sustaining offshore investment and advancing Suriname toward first oil later this decade.
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TotalEnergies expects to kick off a new well drilling campaign in 2027 aimed at expanding its exploration footprint offshore Suriname, the company’s vice president for exploration in the Americas said this week.
Daniel Larranaga made the comments at the Suriname Energy, Oil and Gas Summit (SEOGS) 2026 in Paramaribo. “We’re going to start a multi-well campaign hopefully next year, depending on rig availability,” Larranaga said. “We’re really looking forward to be able to unlock further potential.”
The campaign is expected to include four new exploration wells in Block 58, a massive 1.4 million-acre (approximately 5,665 square kilometers) offshore area about 150 km off Suriname’s coast. This is the same block hosting TotalEnergies’ flagship GranMorgu development.
GranMorgu—Suriname’s first major deepwater oil project—received the FID in October 2024. The $10.5-billion development, operated by TotalEnergies (50%) with partner APA Corporation (initially 50%, with Staatsolie exercising an option for up to 20%), targets first oil in 2028. It will use an FPSO with capacity for up to 220,000 barrels of oil per day. The project builds on several prior discoveries in the block, including Sapakara South and Krabdagu.
Annand Jagesar, Managing Director of Suriname’s state-owned energy company Staatsolie (a minority partner in Block 58), echoed optimism on the sidelines of the conference. “There’s still plenty of room to look for oil,” he told Reuters. If new discoveries are substantial, partners could develop a second standalone field; otherwise, they could tie them back into the GranMorgu infrastructure. Jagesar added that Staatsolie remains open to participating in any viable oil and gas projects that deliver strong returns for Suriname.
Broader context
This planned 2027 campaign represents a “second wave” of exploration for TotalEnergies in Suriname, following earlier successes that led to the Gran Morgu sanction. Block 58 sits in the highly prospective Guyana-Suriname Basin, which has seen major finds on the Guyanese side (e.g., ExxonMobil’s Stabroek Block). Success here could significantly boost Suriname’s emerging offshore industry, which currently produces only onshore crude.
TotalEnergies operates additional blocks in Suriname and continues active exploration in the region.
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Bruce Beaubouef
Managing Editor
Bruce Beaubouef is Managing Editor for Offshore magazine. In that capacity, he plans and oversees content for the magazine; writes features on technologies and trends for the magazine; writes news updates for the website; creates and moderates topical webinars; and creates videos that focus on offshore oil and gas and renewable energies. Beaubouef has been in the oil and gas trade media for 25 years, starting out as Editor of Hart’s Pipeline Digest in 1998. From there, he went on to serve as Associate Editor for Pipe Line and Gas Industry for Gulf Publishing for four years before rejoining Hart Publications as Editor of PipeLine and Gas Technology in 2003. He joined Offshore magazine as Managing Editor in 2010, at that time owned by PennWell Corp. Beaubouef earned his Ph.D. at the University of Houston in 1997, and his dissertation was published in book form by Texas A&M University Press in September 2007 as The Strategic Petroleum Reserve: U.S. Energy Security and Oil Politics, 1975-2005.