Canadian oil and gas exploration company CGX is set to commence drilling on the Corentyne block as early as the end of this year, Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman has confirmed.
According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), the oil company has already appointed a drilling engineer who will be in charge of designing its offshore exploration well on the Corentyne Block offshore Guyana.
Minister Trotman was quoted by DPI as saying that the government is excited about the project.
“CGX has remained committed to Guyana, they have gone through different periods and we are hoping that we could work with them. They are expected to do some drilling this year and we are excited about that,” the minister said.
“The expectation is that they begin drilling by the end of the year. We also have Repsol that will also do some drilling later in the year or early next year,” Minister Trotman added.
In late 2017, CGX had said as part of the renegotiation of its contract with the Government of Guyana, it would relinquish 25 percent of the acreage of both the Corentyne and Demerara blocks to the government.
The new work commitments include drilling an exploration well on the Corentyne Block by November 27, 2019; acquire additional seismic or conduct seismic reprocessing by November 27, 2020; drill an exploration well by November 27, 2022 in the Demerara Block; complete any additional data processing and planning, and secure all regulatory approvals for the drilling of an exploration well by February 12, 2020; drill an exploration well by February 12, 2021 and another by February 12, 2023 in the Berbice Block; complete a geochemical survey of a minimum area of 120 square kilometers and commence a seismic program defined by the aforementioned geochemical survey by February 12, 2020; complete the seismic programme and complete all processing and interpretation of data by August 12, 2021 and drill an exploration well by February 12, 2023.
According to DPI, Chairman and Executive Director CGX, Guyana Professor Suresh Narine said the company was eager to pursue the new work commitments in “this exciting Guyana basin, and in so doing continue our unbroken commitment to the basin, the Guyanese people and its Government for more than 18 years.”
CGX Energy is focused on the exploration of oil in the Guyana-Suriname Basin.
