Oil and Gas Revenues Push Guyana H1 GDP Up 50%

Guyana booked an increase of 49.7% in its real gross domestic product for the first half of the year, led by oil and gas revenues, the country’s government said in an update.

Growth in the oil and gas sector specifically stood at 67.1%, local media reported, while growth from the non-oil part of the economy stood at 12.6% over the six-month period.

Guyana has seen its GDP triple over the past three years as oil production began in earnest. Commercial production began in 2019, and since then, it has ramped up fast. Between 2019 and 2023, output grew at an average annual rate of 98,000 barrels daily, taking the total from zero to 645,000 barrels daily last year.

All of Guyana’s oil currently comes from the Stabroek Block, which is operated by a consortium of Exxon, Hess Corp., and China’s CNOOC. Since the start of their operations there, the three have made 30 discoveries, tapping over 11 billion barrels in reserves. Production from the Stabroek Block is seen by Exxon reaching 1 million barrels daily in 2027.

These developments have turned the tiny South American country into a major oil supply growth engine and spurred predictions it could turn into the second-largest oil producer on the continent.

Output in Guyana is seen rising to over 1.6 million barrels daily by 2030, as the government seeks to maximize returns from the industry before the predicted demand growth peak. If the peak demand predictions fail to materialize, the outlook for Guyana’s oil industry is even brighter.

Meanwhile, the oil industry is making billions both for Guyana and for the companies producing that oil. Last year, Exxon made a net $2.9 billion from its Guyana operations, with Hess Corp. earning $1.88 billion and their third partner CNOOC booking profits of $1.52 billion from the Stabroek Block.

The Guyanese government itself gets a cut of less than 20% but this appears to still be enough to push its economic growth close to 50%.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com