Photograph taken by the Office of the President of Suriname showing President Chan Santokhi (right) and CEO of the French group TotalEnergies Patrick Pouyanné signing documents, October 1, 2024 in Paramaribo (Cabinet of the President of Suriname / Handout)
French oil giant TotalEnergies announced on Tuesday an investment of “around $10.5 billion” in oil exploitation in Suriname, with production expected to start in 2028.
The group has made the “final investment decision” for the development of block 58 of the GranMorgu project, off the coast of Suriname, including a production unit with a capacity of 220,000 barrels per day, according to a press release.
The project “will develop oil discoveries in the Sapakara and Krabdagu fields”, approximately 150 kilometers from the coast. Reserves are estimated at “more than 750 million barrels”.
In September 2023, TotalEnergies announced the launch of the study of the project, then estimated at $9 billion.
The French oil company has several exploration licenses off the coast of Suriname.
“This flagship project is the first offshore development in the country,” underlined Patrick Pouyanné, CEO of TotalEnergies, quoted in the group’s press release.
In a press release, the Surinamese national company Staatsolie indicates that “the majority” of the net revenues, which could reach between 16 and 26 billion dollars for the entire life of the oil field, “will return to the State of Suriname”.
TotalEnergies currently holds 50% of block 58 and the American company APA Corporation the remaining 50%.
Staatsolie intends to assert its participation rights to the tune of 20%. The group will therefore issue a third series of bonds in US dollars, in the first quarter of 2025, to finance them, indicated its general manager Annand Jagesar.
The project should lead to the creation of “more than 6,000 jobs (2,000 direct and 4,000 indirect and induced)”, according to TotalEnergies.
