Guyana to survey offshore block licensed to TotalEnergies

May 21 (oilnow.gy) The Guyana government and Viridien/CGG Services will commence geotechnical and seismic survey operations within offshore Block S4, which was licensed last year to a TotalEnergies-led group. Guyana’s Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) announced the survey in notices. 

The notices, dated May 18, 2026, said the work will take place within Guyana’s Exclusive Economic Zone and is scheduled to conclude on November 15, 2026.

The operation will involve the OSV BGP Moonrise-G and the SV BGP Prospector. 

According to the MARAD, the survey area is approximately 16.98 nautical miles, or 31.4 kilometers, off the coast of Guyana. It covers about 1,782.28 square nautical miles, or 6,113.05 square kilometers.

The survey activity comes as Guyana advances broader efforts to expand geological data coverage across offshore acreage and reduce exploration risk in frontier areas south of the prolific Stabroek Block.

In March, the Ministry of Natural Resources announced plans for a large-scale offshore 3D multi-client seismic acquisition program covering approximately 25,000 square kilometers across eleven blocks from the 2022 Licensing Round located south of Stabroek toward the Guyana-Suriname border.

The ministry said the initiative, being advanced with support from Viridien following an international procurement process launched in September 2024, is intended to strengthen Guyana’s upstream petroleum framework and improve the marketability of offshore acreage in future licensing opportunities.

Officials have said the seismic program will generate detailed subsurface images to help identify hydrocarbon deposits and guide future drilling activity, while reducing exploration risk across the Guyana Basin.

The agreement with Viridien also establishes a pre-funded model under which energy companies provide early capital for seismic acquisition in exchange for exclusive early access to data.

The ministry said all seismic data acquired under the initiative will remain the property of the Government of Guyana and can later be licensed to third parties.

The data collected is also expected to support the establishment of Guyana’s first petroleum data repository.

Guyana’s first offshore licensing round, launched in 2022, did not include seismic data packages for bidders. The government has since said it intends to hold a second licensing round only after additional seismic information becomes available for prospective investors.

TotalEnergies plans to begin its own US$25 million 3D seismic survey at Block S4 in August as it works to determine drilling prospects. TotalEnergies operates the block with a 40% interest. QatarEnergy holds 35%, while Petronas holds 25%. 

All of Guyana’s current oil production comes from the ExxonMobil-operated Stabroek Block, where partners Hess and CNOOC are co-venturers.