The discovery took place at the Fusaea-1 exploration well in Block 52, located about 170km offshore and nine kilometres east of Roystonea-1, the national oil company said.

“Further evaluation is being undertaken to determine the full extent of this discovery and its potential for an integrated development with the recent Roystonea-1 and Sloanea-1 discoveries,” it said in a statement today.

It said Petronas Suriname is the operator of Block 52 with a 50% participating interest together with ExxonMobil.

Petronas said the well was spudded in February 2024 and successfully drilled to a total depth of 5,227m with zero lost time injuries.

Petronas executive vice-president and CEO of upstream, Adif Zulkifli said the results from the Fusaea-1 exploration well have solidified Petronas’s standing in Suriname as a key player in hydrocarbon resources, following the successes of the Sloanea-1 and Roystonea-1 discoveries.

Meanwhile, vice-president of exploration Redhani Rahman said the third hydrocarbon discovery has significantly expanded the prospectivity and integrated oil and gas development potential within Block 52.

“In pursuit of sustainable and high-value material resources, Petronas remains committed in its exploration activities in selected focus regions as part of its portfolio rationalisation efforts,” he added.

Block 52 is located north of the coast of Paramaribo, Suriname’s capital city, within the prospective Suriname-Guyana basin.

In addition to Block 52, it said Petronas Suriname operates Block 48 and Block 63 with 100% participating interest and 30% non-operating interest in Block 64.