ExxonMobil will not seek to renew or extend its licence for the Canje Block following a string of unsuccessful exploration efforts, a development that oil expert Dr. Vincent Adams says underscores the inherent risks of petroleum exploration.
The decision was disclosed by Country Manager Alistair Routledge during a recent media engagement at the company’s headquarters at Ogle, East Coast Demerara.
“We are not planning to apply for any extension or renewal of the Canje Licence. We believe, we exceeded the commitments that were laid out in the Petroleum Agreement and the prospecting licence for Canje,” Routledge said.
Responding to the development reported in Kaieteur News, former Environmental Protection Agency Executive Director and retired senior officer of the United States Department of Energy, Dr. Vincent Adams, cautioned against misconceptions about oil exploration in Guyana.
“This is exactly why I caution the many who call me about investing in oil exploration in Guyana, believing that there is a pool of oil down there below the ground, when the fact is that a well can come up dry even when drilled a mere 10 feet from a big producer,” Adams said.
He also dismissed the notion that seismic technology guarantees success.
“People are also getting carried away by this apparent miracle finding seismic survey which is a myth. Seismic graphs DO NOT SEE OIL. It only sees geologic structures where oil may be trapped as it moves over the billions of years,” he explained.
Adams noted that ExxonMobil’s success in the Stabroek Block is an exception rather than the norm.
“The Stabroek block is a rarity with such a high success ratio with the normal ratio closer to 20%,” he said, adding, “Lest we also forget that exploration has been occurring offshore Guyana since in the 60’s and oil was only discovered in 2015, so lots of dry holes.”
Three Wells, No Commercial Finds
ExxonMobil’s decision follows the drilling of three wells in the Canje Block—Bulletwood-1, Jabillo-1, and Sapote-1—all of which failed to find commercially viable quantities of hydrocarbons.
Bulletwood-1, drilled in 2021, encountered quality reservoirs but only non-commercial hydrocarbons. Jabillo-1, drilled months later, also failed to yield commercial results, while Sapote-1 similarly came up dry.
Routledge said the company does not consider further exploration in the block to be commercially competitive, though he noted that ExxonMobil cannot speak on behalf of its partners, who may make independent decisions regarding the block.
ExxonMobil operated the Canje Block with a 35% stake, alongside TotalEnergies (35%), JHI Associates (17.5%), and Mid-Atlantic Oil & Gas (12.5%). The exploration licence expired in early March 2026.
The block, spanning approximately 6,100 square kilometres (about 1.5 million acres), was initially awarded to Mid-Atlantic Oil & Gas in March 2015, with ExxonMobil later joining as operator.
Despite the setback at Canje, ExxonMobil has recorded significant success offshore Guyana, with more than 40 discoveries in the Stabroek Block, which is estimated to contain over 11.6 billion barrels of oil.
