TotalEnergies days away from drilling ops with Stena drillship offshore Suriname

France’s energy giant TotalEnergies is getting ready to embark on drilling activities off the coast of Suriname with a drillship owned by Stena Drilling, an offshore drilling contractor.

TotalEnergies has set its cap on drilling the Macaw-1 exploration well in Block 64 by mid-May 2025, according to Suriname’s national oil company (NOC), Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname (Staatsolie). This exploration drilling program is perceived to have the potential to lead to new oil and gas plays in the Suriname-Guyana basin over the long term. 

Before the National Environmental Authority granted TotalEnergies a permit to drill the Macaw-1 well at the end of April, the French player contracted Stena Drilling to carry out the drilling operations, using the Stena DrillMAX drillship, which previously worked in Guyana for ExxonMobil. Afterward, the rig underwent maintenance and safety checks in Curaçao.

Following an acceptance test, the mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU) is scheduled to depart for Suriname on May 15 and spud the Macaw-1 well a few days later, on May 19, 2025. 

The drilling of the well will take 80 working days, fully supported from a port facility (a shore base) in Suriname. Supplying the vessel with, among other things, materials, fuel, food, and drinks will take place from a port in Paramaribo.

In addition, personnel will be flown to and from the vessel from Paramaribo, which Staatsolie describes as a boost for the Surinamese offshore oil and gas industry, especially for the local suppliers of goods and services.

Block 64 is situated in the central northern region of Suriname’s territorial waters, approximately 280 kilometers from the coast, with water depths ranging from 1,000 to 3,000 meters. TotalEnergies holds a 40% participation interest and serves as the operator, with Petronas and QatarEnergy as its partners, each with a 30% stake, respectively.

The Macaw-1 well, which is seen as a significant part of the exploration work program for this year in Block 64, is the first of five exploration wells planned to be drilled in different blocks this year in Suriname’s offshore area by international oil and gas companies.

Moreover, the drilling activities of the four other exploration wells will also be fully supported from a shore base in Suriname. Staatsolie explains that at least these four other exploration wells will be drilled in the second half of 2025. There are two wells in Block 52, where Petronas is the operator: Caiman-1 and Kiskadee-1. These wells will test prospects within the ‘golden lane.’

Three of the five wells, including the Macaw-1, are located outside the areas designated as the ‘golden lane,’ referring to an area with similar subsurface characteristics, also known as a play, which in geology indicates regions where geological conditions are conducive to the formation, migration, and accumulation of oil and gas. 

The Korikori-1 will be drilled in Block 5, where Chevron is the operator. This well lies outside the ‘golden lane,’ just like the Araku Deep-1 in Block 65, operated by Shell.

“Success of the exploration drilling program could potentially lead to new oil and gas plays in the long term. This year could potentially be a very important one for further growth of the offshore oil and gas industry in Suriname,” concluded Staatsolie.

This comes months after the NOC put the wheels in motion to get the money required to cover its part of the development costs for the first-ever offshore oil field in Suriname.