WATCH: SBM Offshore’s fifth Guyana-bound FPSO enters drydock

July 16, 2025, by Melisa Cavcic

Netherlands-based SBM Offshore, a provider of the design, construction, installation, and operation of offshore floating facilities, has tucked a new construction milestone under its belt for a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) unit destined for a sixth deepwater oil development project, operated by ExxonMobil Guyana, a subsidiary of the U.S. energy giant ExxonMobil, at the Stabroek block off the coast of Guyana.

Following a final investment decision (FID) to develop the Whiptail oil development as its sixth project in Guyana’s Stabroek block, ExxonMobil put SBM Offshore in charge of the front end engineering and design (FEED) work for the FPSO Jaguar, which comes with an expected field life of at least twenty years.

A steel strike ceremony, held on November 12, 2024, set in motion the production of over 300 metric tons of fabricated fixtures for the Stabroek block-bound vessel, which is expected to come online in 2027, approximately 200 kilometers offshore Guyana.

While disclosing that its fifth FPSO for Guyana has entered drydock at Seatrium’s yard in Singapore, the Dutch player described the achievement as a major step forward. As topsides construction is said to be progressing on schedule, the firm expects its next key milestones to include the installation of the mooring structures and riser balcony.

The FPSO Jaguar is designed to produce around 250,000 barrels of oil per day, store up to 2 million barrels of crude oil, and be spread-moored at about 1,630 meters water depth. The vessel’s design is based on the company’s Fast4Ward program, reinforcing the firm’s commitment to standardized, efficient, and sustainable offshore production solutions.

As the Whiptail project plans to develop the Whiptail, Pinktail, and Tilapia fields, alongside potential additional resources, if they end up being feasible and economically viable, the development concept entails drilling operations via drillships to produce oil from approximately 40 to 65 production and injection wells.

ExxonMobil Guyana, an affiliate of ExxonMobil, is the operator and holds a 45% interest in the Stabroek block, with Hess Guyana Exploration (30%) and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana (25%), as its partners.However, Hess is in the process of merging with Chevron; thus, the latter may become ExxonMobil’s new partner, upon resolution of ongoing arbitration over preemptive rights in the Stabroek block joint operating agreement.

As it works to construct this FPSO for ExxonMobil, SBM Offshore is also busy with other projects, as illustrated by a first steel cut ceremony for another unit, which will be deployed at TotalEnergies’ project offshore Suriname.