TotalEnergies has announced the signing of an agreement with Spanish company Moeve (formerly CEPSA) to acquire the 25% interest held by Moeve in Block 53, offshore Suriname.
This acquisition positions TotalEnergies as a partner in the licence alongside APA, which holds a 45% stake and operates the block, and Petronas, which owns 30%.
Block 53 is situated directly east of Block 58, where TotalEnergies serves as operator with a 40% stake.
The Block 53 licence encompasses the Baja-1 discovery, which was drilled close to the boundary of Block 58 by operator APA.
The discovery was reported to contain 34m (112ft) of net oil pay when drilled to a depth of 5,290m (17,356ft) below sea level.
This discovery can leverage existing infrastructure and extend the production plateau of the planned Gran Morgu project in Block 58.
TotalEnergies announced the final investment decision for the Gran Morgu development in October 2024.
TotalEnergies Americas exploration and production senior vice-president Javier Rielo said: “This acquisition brings new resources to the development of our low-cost and low-emission Gran Morgu project.
“It also proves how TotalEnergies will leverage GranMorgu infrastructure to develop profitably additional resources and extend its production plateau, strengthening the position of the company in the offshore of Suriname.”
The Gran Morgu development is estimated to hold more than 750 million barrels of recoverable resources and represents a significant investment of $10.5bn.
With a 200,000bpd capacity, the Gran Morgu is expected to initiate production in the first half of 2028.
The floating offshore production unit for Gran Morgu is expected to be one of TotalEnergies' largest projects to date.
TotalEnergies has already invested more than $1.4bn in exploration activities in Suriname, reported Reuters.
Suriname has yet to produce hydrocarbons but aims to replicate the success of neighbouring Guyana, where Exxon Mobil has discovered more than 11 billion barrels of recoverable oil and gas.
Earlier this month, TotalEnergies acquired 25% interest in 40 offshore exploration leases in the US from Chevron.
The offshore leases cover an area of approximately 1,000km² and are situated between 175km and 330km from the shore.
