Guyana’s new bill to hold operators accountable for oil spills

Given the challenges many countries around the globe have faced in containing oil spills, Guyana has taken steps to avoid a similar fate by making oil and gas operators liable for environmental protection, thanks to a new legislation, which sets out a comprehensive national legal framework for oil spill prevention, preparedness, response, and compensation.

Guyana’s National Assembly has debated and passed on May 16, 2025, a bill, formally known as the Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Responsibility Bill 2025, said to greatly enhance national preparedness to ensure that responsible parties will be held accountable in the unfortunate event of an oil spill.

While explaining that the creation of this legislation aligns with international best practices to ensure the country’s waters are protected, Mark Phillips, Guyana’s Prime Minister, underlined: “The presentation of this bill during this critical period in our economic history is vital in safeguarding our ecosystem from the effects of oil spill.

“Guyana, standing at the threshold as a major oil-producing nation, must take pattern from these models by establishing a clear authority for oversight, aligning with best global practices, and ensuring all operators bear full responsibility for environmental protection.”

Expressing support for the bill, Vickram Bharrat, Natural Resources Minister, boasted about the management of the oil sector, saying that the new legislation only adds to all that was done to strengthen the regulations of the energy industry, as the government has already procured the country’s first capping stack that can immediately be deployed in the event of an oil spill.

Mohabir Anil Nandlall, Guyana’s Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, pointed out: “In respect of disasters which we have already settled. The absence of a disaster preparedness apparatus, a legal standard by which operators have developed, inadequate insurance against some disasters, and the mechanism of compensation in the event of a disaster. I am pleased to announce that these very valid and crucial concerns are addressed in this bill.”

In Nandlall’s view, the bill aligns with Guyana’s low-carbon development strategy and provides a network of statutory frameworks that place a strong emphasis on local content and environmental protection while ensuring that everyone in the sector operates safely and responsibly.

As this legislation designates the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) as the national authority responsible for coordinating response efforts and mitigating the impact of any spill, a formalized National Oil Spill Committee within the CDC will oversee the development of an Incident Command System and lead regular training and drill exercises to ensure readiness.

ExxonMobil, which currently runs Guyana’s oil and gas show, intends to have six floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) units with a gross production capacity of over 1.2 million barrels of oil per day online on the Stabroek block by the end of 2027.

The U.S. oil major has also hinted at the possibility of having up to ten such units active in Guyana’s waters, where it already has three projects up and running: Liza Phase 1, Liza Phase 2, and Payara. Thanks to plans to grow production capacity to surpass 1.3 million barrels of oil per day when all six planned projects come online, the firm is also developing Yellowtail, Uaru, and Whiptail.

In addition, the company is pursuing Hammerhead as its seventh deepwater oil project in Guyana to add between 120,000 and 180,000 barrels per day by 2029, raising the country’s overall production capacity bar to nearly 1.5 million bpd.

Following the submission of its environmental impact assessment for the development of the project, ExxonMobil selected MODEC to develop an FPSO vessel for Hammerhead.