Latest update March 13th, 2026 12:35 AM
Exxon gears up for eighth project, seeks year-end Govt. approval – Routledge
(Kaieteur News) – ExxonMobil Guyana Limited (EMGL) is expected to submit the Field Development Plan (FDP) for its eighth project in the Stabroek Block, the gas-rich longtail development in the coming weeks, with hopes of securing regulatory approval by the end of 2026.
EMGL’s president, Alistair Routledge, made the disclosure while addressing attendees at the Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo 2026 at the Guyana Marriott Hotel in Georgetown.
Map showing the location of Exxon’s eight project in the Stabroek block.
“We’re due to submit a field development plan to the Ministry of Natural Resources in the coming weeks,” Routledge said. He added that the company is nearing completion of the environmental and socio-economic studies required for the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and environmental permitting process.
“Our aspiration is working with the government and the different agencies that by the end of this year, that we should be able to sanction the longtail project,” he noted.
Exxon, operator of the Stabroek Block, is currently producing over 900,000 barrels of oil daily from four developments — Liza Phase One, Liza Phase Two, Payara and Yellowtail. The other projects: Uaru, Whiptail and Hammerhead have also received government approval but are not yet producing.
Unlike previous developments focused primarily on oil, Longtail will focus on gas production. Routledge explained that while the Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel may appear similar to others in the fleet, its configuration will differ significantly.
“But how different is it from the prior projects? To the untrained eye, that FPSO [Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading vessel] looks just like all the other ones, but it’s a little different. There is no water injection on this FPSO. It’s all about gas injection because what we’ll be developing are retrograde gas fields. They are gas fields. They contain gas and gas condensate when produced to surface,” he said.
According to Routledge, the project will initially operate as a gas cycling development with 1.2 billion cubic feet per day of gas compression capacity, equivalent to the combined compression capacity of the first four projects.
“That’s the total gas compression capacity of all of the first four projects: Liza Phase One, Liza Phase Two, Payara, and Yellowtail. Take all the compression from those four FPSOs and put it on this one FPSO. So, it may look the same but it’s actually very, very different,” he stated.
He noted that in the early stages, the project will produce significant volumes of liquids. BlackRock Midstream describes condensate as extremely light oil. “In the early days, it’ll have a capacity of 250,000 barrels per day of condensate. We will also future-proof it. It’ll be gas export ready from day one,” Routledge said. BlackRock Midstream describes condensate as extremely light oil.
Longtail will involve drilling of production and injection wells, installation, commissioning, and operations of Subsea Umbilicals, Risers, and Flowlines (SURF), and a FPSO for handling and offloading of produced hydrocarbons. The company plans to install a gas export riser and associated equipment on the FPSO to enable delivery of gas.
Routledge outlined that discussions are ongoing with the Government of Guyana regarding timelines and potential destinations for the gas; whether to support other offshore projects, the Wales Gas-to-Energy initiative, or transported to the planned second GTE project in Berbice.
The proposed longtail development is located in the southeastern portion of the Stabroek Block, approximately 200 km from Georgetown and adjacent to previous Stabroek Projects. Exxon has indicated plans to use drill ships to produce the non-associated gas and condensate from approximately 24 – 60 production and injection wells. The subsea equipment will be installed at a depth of approximately 1,600 – 2,000 metres.
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Excellent article. Very well written.