Hess today announced that its subsidiary, Hess Guyana(Block B) Exploration Limited, had reached agreement with Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (ExxonMobil) to acquire a 15 percent participating interest in the Kaieteur Block, offshore Guyana. The Cooperative Republic of Guyana has provided Hess and ExxonMobil an instrument detailing the transfer of interest, which has been completed.

“Our interest in the Kaieteur block extends our company’s already significant acreage position in the prolific Guyana-Suriname Basin, which has delivered seven world class oil discoveries to date,” said CEO John Hess. “We look forward to working with our partners and the Government of Guyana to evaluate the potential of this highly prospective acreage.”

The Kaieteur block is located approximately 155 miles (approximately 250 kilometers) offshore the coast of Guyana, adjacent to the Stabroek Block. The Kaieteur Block is approximately 3.3 million acres (approximately 13,535 square kilometers), which is equivalent in size to more than 580 deepwater blocks in the Gulf of Mexico. The work program in 2018 will include processing and interpretation of approximately 5,700 square kilometers of 3D seismic data and evaluation of a future drilling program.

Significantly, the Kaieteur Block lies in the same geological basin as the Stabroek Block, where total recoverable resources of more than 3.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent have been discovered to date. Hess has a 30 percent working interest in the Stabroek Block.