Venezuela casts shadow over Guyana’s bright oil future

But 1m b/d production could be just a few years away if geopolitical risks subside

The future appears bright for Guyana’s rapidly expanding offshore oil industry. Since the first announced commercial oil strike in the Liza field in May 2015, the ExxonMobil-led consortium targeting the massive 6.6m-acre Stabroek block has made more than 34 additional discoveries, amounting to 11b bl of recoverable oil and counting. In addition, Guyana closed its first competitive auction for 14 offshore blocks in September, with bids on eight of them. Oslo-based consultancy Rystad Energy is predicting Guyana will become the world’s fourth-largest offshore oil producer by 2035, while Edinburgh-based consultancy Wood Mackenzie is predicting the country to break the 1m b/d milestone in 2027 an