MODEC Wins FEED Contract for Exxon Mobil Project Offshore Guyana

MODEC Inc. won a contract on Nov. 1 to carry out FEED for the Uaru project offshore Guyana for an Exxon Mobil Corp. subsidiary.

Targeted to begin production in 2026, it would be the fifth FPSO to produce oil from Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Ltd.’s operated deepwater Stabroek Block.

The contract covers Esso’s initial funding for MODEC to begin FEED activities related to the FPSO design and to secure the M350 hull for FPSO service for the project.

Under the contract, MODEC will design and construct the FPSO based on its M350 newbuild design. Uaru will be the second M350 hull used for an FPSO. The FPSO will be designed to produce 250,000 bbl/d, treat 540 MMcf/d of associated gas, inject 350,000 bbl/d of water and store about 2 million barrels of crude oil. It will be moored in about 2000 m water depth with a SOFEC Spread Mooring System.

Following FEED and subject to government approvals in Guyana of the development plan, project sanction including final investment decision by Exxon Mobil, and Esso’s release of the second phase of work, MODEC expects to construct the FPSO and install it in Guyana. MODEC also anticipates operating the FPSO for an initial 10-year period, with potential options for continuation.

String of finds, projects

Last week, two more discoveries were reported on the Stabroek block, bringing to 30 the number of finds on the block.

In Exxon Mobil’s announcement of the latest two finds, the company said it was pursuing environmental authorization for the Uaru project, which would be the block’s fifth development offshore Guyana. The group expects to submit a plan of development to the Government of Guyana before year’s end for the Uaru development, which would target going online at the end of 2026.

The first two sanctioned offshore Guyana projects, Liza Phase 1 and Liza Phase 2, are producing above design capacity and averaged nearly 360,000 b/d in the third quarter, the company said. A third project, Payara, is expected to start up by the end of 2023, and the fourth project, Yellowtail, is expected to go online in 2025. By the end of the decade, Exxon Mobil expects Guyana’s oil production capacity to exceed 1 MMbbl/d.

Exxon Mobil announced the initial Uaru discovery in January 2020. It was the 16th oil discovery in the 6.6-million-acre Stabroek Block. Drilled in 6,342 ft of water, the Uaru-1 well encountered approximately 94 ft of high-quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoir.

The supermajor announced the Uaru-2 discovery in the same block in April 2021. Drilling at Uaru-2 encountered 120 ft of high-quality oil-bearing reservoirs, including newly identified intervals below the original Uaru-1 discovery.

Esso operates the Stabroek Block 45% interest on behalf of partners Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd. with 30% and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Ltd. with 25% interest.