Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname N.V. sees no reason to deviate from TotalEnergies' timeline for the development of the first offshore project in Suriname. Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and chief executive director (CEO) of TotalEnergies (TE), said at an investor presentation on February 7, 2024 that Block 58 is an important project for his company and that work is underway to sanction it before the end of 2024.
There are currently many oil projects underway around the world, which, combined with global inflation, has led to increases in costs for material and services. In response to a question from a representative of an investment bank about price increases in drilling wells and other activities and possible effects on projects, Pouyanné explained that costs certainly matter. At the same time, alternatives are being looked at to absorb the effects of higher prices or consideration is being given to waiting for a more favorable moment to conclude contracts with suppliers. Taking costs into account is an important part of the process of making an investment decision. His comments were about all activities of TotalEnergies and not specifically about Suriname. Pouyanné also confirmed in his response that work is underway to have the project sanctioned before the end of 2024.
In the Block 58 project there are options to accelerate development and, and factors that could lead to additional efforts to control project costs. It is still too early in the process to talk about a delay of the project. This will become apparent in the coming months from market research executed by TotalEnergies. If additional efforts are needed, there are still opportunities to account for any delays. Staatsolie's experience is that TotalEnergies is doing everything possible to develop the Block 58 project as quickly as possible. Staatsolie and TE remain focused on executing the project according to the agreed timeline and achieving first oil production in 2028. Staatsolie will inform the community if there are any new developments that deviate from this timeline.
The investors meeting of TotalEnergies can be viewed here.
Confidence in our own abilities
