Yellowtail

Yellowtail Oil Project Profile

Location and Geology

• The Yellowtail development project is located in the Stabroek Block, approximately 202-203 kilometers northeast of the coast of Georgetown, Guyana. The project area is in ultra-deepwater, with water depths ranging from 1,700 to 1,900 meters.
• The project involves the development of the Yellowtail and Redtail fields, discovered in April 2019 and August 2020, respectively. The Yellowtail field was discovered by the Yellowtail-1 exploration well, which encountered approximately 292 feet (89 meters) of high-quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoir. The Redtail field, located 2.5 kilometers northwest of Yellowtail, was discovered by the Redtail-1 exploration well, which encountered about 232 feet (70 meters) of high-quality oil-bearing sandstone reservoir.

Project Details

• Operator and Partners: The project is operated by Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), a subsidiary of ExxonMobil, with a 45% interest. Other partners include Hess Guyana Exploration Limited with a 30% interest and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited with a 25% interest.
• Development Plan: The project involves a subsea development with up to 67 development wells, including 26 production wells and 25 injection wells, drilled from six drill centers. The wells will be tied back to the 'ONE GUYANA' Floating Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessel for processing.
• Subsea Infrastructure: The subsea system includes 51 enhanced vertical deepwater trees (EVDTs) and 12 manifolds along with associated controls and tie-in equipment. This setup will facilitate the production, water injection, and gas re-injection operations.

FPSO Vessel

• Name and Capacity: The 'ONE GUYANA' FPSO vessel, contracted by SBM Offshore, will have a crude oil processing capacity of 250,000 barrels per day (bpd), a gas treatment capacity of 450 million cubic feet per day, and a water injection capacity of 300,000 bpd. The vessel will also have a storage capacity of two million barrels of crude oil.
• Design and Mooring: The FPSO will be a newbuild, multi-purpose floater hull based on SBM Offshore’s Fast4Ward® program. It will be spread moored by an up to 22-point spread mooring anchor system at a water depth of approximately 1,800 meters.
• Facilities: The FPSO will include facilities for produced water treatment, oil separation, gas injection, a flare tower, safety systems, power generation, and crude metering.

Environmental and Regulatory Approvals

• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA): The EIA report for the Yellowtail project was submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Guyana in October 2021. ExxonMobil made the final investment decision (FID) in April 2022 after securing environmental approval and a Production License from the Ministry of Natural Resources.
• Environmental and Socioeconomic Management Plan: The project includes a comprehensive Environmental and Socioeconomic Management Plan (ESMP) to ensure compliance with environmental and socioeconomic regulations throughout the project's life cycle.

Contractors and Suppliers

• Key Contractors: TechnipFMC is responsible for delivering the overall subsea production system, including project management, engineering, manufacturing, and testing. SBM Offshore was awarded the front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract for the FPSO and will also design and construct it. Other contractors include McDermott International, Hunting, Mattr, Amarinth, and Bayphase.

Investment and Timeline

• Investment: The project is estimated to cost approximately $10 billion.
• Timeline: The final investment decision (FID) was made in April 2022. The project is currently in the construction stage, with production scheduled to commence in 2025. The production is forecast to peak in 2027 and continue until the field reaches its economic limit in 2055.

Production and Export

• Production Capacity: The 'ONE GUYANA' FPSO is designed to produce 250,000 barrels of oil per day. Oil tankers will be used to transport and export the produced oil from the field to global markets.
• Field Life: The Yellowtail field is expected to be operational for at least 20 years, with production continuing until the field reaches its economic limit in 2055.

Context within the Stabroek Block

• The Stabroek Block, where the Yellowtail project is located, is a significant oil-producing area with multiple discoveries, including Liza, Liza Deep, Payara, and others. The block holds an estimated recoverable resource of more than ten billion oil-equivalent barrels and is expected to support at least ten development projects and the installation of up to ten FPSO vessels by 2027.