Gas
ExxonMobil approves eighth offshore Guyana development
ExxonMobil has sanctioned a multibillion-dollar investment for the Longtail project in Guyana's Stabroek block, targeting a 2030 startup.
Key points
- ExxonMobil greenlights the $12.5-billion Longtail development in the Stabroek block.
- The project targets a 2030 startup using a floating production, storage and offloading vessel.
- Stabroek block output continues to scale rapidly alongside other planned ventures.
Consortium partners led by ExxonMobil have issued a final investment decision for the Longtail development situated within the Stabroek block offshore Guyana, according to reports by Rigzone and Offshore Energy. The undertaking requires a capital commitment of $12.5 billion following the receipt of necessary regulatory clearances.
What happened
Longtail represents the eighth approved venture in the prolific Stabroek area. Operations are projected to commence by 2030, deploying a floating production, storage and offloading unit capable of handling 1.2 billion standard cubic feet of natural gas per day and 250,000 barrels daily of condensate. The scheme involves drilling approximately 45 subsea production and injection wells.
ExxonMobil Guyana Limited operates the acreage with a 45 percent interest. Hess Guyana Exploration Ltd holds 30 percent, while CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited retains 25 percent. The approval marks the first set of project clearances involving Chevron Corp following its acquisition of Hess, which concluded after resolving a prior arbitration process.
Current output across four operational Stabroek schemes stands at approximately 900,000 barrels per day. The upcoming launch of the Uaru project in the final quarter is expected to push aggregate production past the one-million-barrel mark. Subsequent developments such as Whiptail and Hammerhead are scheduled to come on stream in 2027 and 2029 respectively.
Why it matters
The rapid expansion of Guyana's offshore sector offers critical lessons for emerging petroleum producers across Africa, including Nigeria. Fuel exports constituted 88.9 percent of Guyana's merchandise exports in 2025, according to World Bank figures, underscoring the profound economic weight of large-scale hydrocarbon discoveries. For international energy investors, such prolific basins provide vital non-OPEC supply growth against a backdrop of steady commodity pricing, with Brent crude noted at $92.14 per barrel and Henry Hub natural gas at $3 per MMBtu in November 2026 data from the US Energy Information Administration.
At the same time, balancing intensive resource extraction with domestic energy requirements remains a central challenge for developing economies. While Guyana records an electricity access rate of 93 percent as of 2024, its broader economic dependence on petroleum mirrors structural dilemmas faced by African producers striving to translate offshore wealth into diversified industrial growth.
Original reporting
This article draws on the following reports. Read them in full on the publishers’ sites.
Context from CEII
Gas is the flexible backbone of many grids and the designated transition fuel in many national plans, from LNG trade to domestic LPG and CNG. Supply security and pricing drive both power reliability and emissions.
0.0% of electricity in Guyana came from gas in 2021Countries in this story
Written by the CEII Desk, the Centre’s automated newsroom, from the reporting credited above and CEII’s own data. Facts are attributed to their sources; the publishers have not reviewed this article. Spotted an error? Tell our editors.
