An SLB NV/Ltd alliance of contractors and Malaysia’s national oil and gas company have agreed to collaborate in oil and gas projects offshore Suriname.
The pact between Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), through Petronas Suriname E&P BV, and the Subsea Integration Alliance, which comprises SLB OneSubsea and Subsea7 SA, “aims to unlock resources in Suriname’s emerging frontier basin through innovative and cost-effective subsea solutions”, a joint statement said.
“The agreement establishes a long-term framework for collaboration across the project lifecycle. This approach enables early involvement to co-develop and co-create cost-effective solutions, accelerate field development and enhance project economics”.
“Under this framework, Subsea Integration Alliance may provide full engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning solutions for multiple discoveries in Suriname”, the statement added. “The scope includes subsea production systems as well as subsea umbilical, riser and flowlines components”.
OneSubsea consists of Curaçao-incorporated SLB, which has headquarters in Houston, Paris and The Hague; Norway’s Aker Solutions ASA; and Luxembourg-registered Subsea7 SA, which has headquarters in London.
Petronas this year expects to make a FID (final investment decision) on its first hydrocarbon discovery in the South American country, according to a statement by Suriname’s state-owned oil and gas company Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname NV on November 13, 2025. Staatsolie expects Sloanea-1, which Petronas declared a discovery December 11, 2020, to start gas production 2030.
The well is in Block 52, where Petronas also discovered Roystonea-1 in 2023 and Fusaea-1 and Sloanea-2 in 2024. Block 52 spans over 4,700 square kilometers (1,814.68 square miles) north of the coast of Paramaribo, according to Petronas.
Exxon Mobil Corp exited Block 52 in 2024 by selling its 50 percent stake to Petronas.
Petronas operates the block with an 80 percent stake. Staatsolie’s Paradise Oil Co NV (POC) owns 20 percent.
Late last year Petronas announced two new PSCs in Suriname. Petronas has secured 30 percent in Block 9 as operator and a 30 percent non-operating stake in Block 10, Staatsolie said in a press release November 5.
The two leases sit in shallow waters about 50 kilometers (31.07 miles) from the Saramacca coast. Block 9 spans more than 2,600 sq km while Block 10 covers nearly 3,000 sq km. Each license lasts 30 years, Staatsolie said.
“By signing these PSCs, the parties involved obtain the exclusive rights for exploration, development and production in the respective blocks”, Staatsolie said. “The initial phase of the exploration period will last three years, during which the focus will be on acquiring and processing 3D seismic data to map the subsurface structure”.
Petronas said in its own statement it now holds stakes in eight blocks offshore Suriname. Block 9 and 10 “mark a significant milestone in Petronas’ continued expansion in the Suriname-Guyana Basin, a region recognized globally for its hydrocarbon potential”, Petronas said.
Petronas noted both blocks are “strategically located between proven deepwater discoveries and onshore producing fields”.
To contact the author, email jov.onsat@rigzone.com
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