Consultant reveals Guyana barrel cost estimates

Estimated production costs for ExxonMobil's discoveries in Guyana range from US$31 to US$50/barrel, according to Sonya Boodhoo, senior analyst at Rystad Energy.

The numbers were part of a presentation by Boodhoo on oil production and revenue organized by the country's Private Sector Commission, ahead of first output expected in 2020.

The analyst said that if only the eight discoveries to date are sanctioned, Guyana's total take from oil production could reach US$100bn, the South American nation's Department of Public Information reported

She added that the government's contract with the US major was in line with others signed in other frontier countries where average government take is 45-70%, and that in the case of Guyana, the ExxonMobil profit sharing agreement is 59%,

The consultant expects the US major will spend approximately US$15bn to develop wells with two more FPSOs which, according to Boodhoo, will be larger than the 120,000b/d Liza Destiny FPSO.

She also branded ExxonMobil's 80% offshore oil discovery success rate as "extraordinary" when compared to the industry average of 35%.