Keypoints:
- Ghana’s Cybele Energy secures shallow-water Block S7 in Guyana
- First African-owned company to hold offshore acreage in the country
- Block estimated to contain 400m barrels of recoverable oil
GHANA’S Cybele Energy has become the first African-owned exploration and production company to secure offshore acreage in Guyana, marking a symbolic and commercial breakthrough for African participation in one of the world’s fastest-growing oil provinces.
The Accra-headquartered company said on December 10 that it had signed a $17 million exploration agreement for shallow-water Block S7, awarded under Guyana’s first competitive offshore licensing round. The award places Cybele Energy alongside major international players operating in a basin that has reshaped Guyana’s economy over the past decade.
Block S7 is located around 50 kilometres from ExxonMobil’s Liza developments and is estimated to hold approximately 400m barrels of recoverable oil. Under the terms of the production sharing agreement, drilling of the first exploration well is expected within 12 months of the PSA’s effective date.
Strategic location boosts commercial appeal
The block sits outside Guyana’s disputed maritime areas, reducing geopolitical risk for investors, and benefits from existing 3D seismic data overlapping the Carapa-1 area. Cybele Energy said these factors significantly enhance the block’s prospectivity and reduce uncertainty at the exploration stage.
Guyana’s fiscal regime for shallow-water blocks further improves the project’s economics. The PSA allows for up to 65 percent cost recovery, a structure designed to balance investor incentives with state revenues. Based on preliminary development concepts, Cybele Energy estimates that Block S7 could support peak production of up to 160,000 barrels of oil per day, using eight production wells and onshore early production facilities.
African-led expansion into global energy markets
Cybele Energy brings shallow-water operational experience from multiple African jurisdictions into Guyana. The company is led by its president, Beatrice Mensah-Tayui, and positions itself as an African-owned E&P firm focused on ESG-led development, skills transfer and indigenous capacity building.
In a statement, the company said its entry into Guyana reflects a broader ambition to demonstrate that African energy companies can compete internationally as licence holders and operators, not only as junior partners or service providers.
Technical support for the project will be provided by Norway-based Well Expertise, which is expected to contribute to subsurface evaluation, well planning and drilling design during the exploration phase.
Deal signed in Georgetown
The agreement was formally signed in Georgetown at a government-hosted ceremony, according to local media reports. Legal advisory services were provided by Africa Legal Associates (ALA), which advised Cybele Energy through a three-year licensing and negotiation process leading up to the award.
The ceremony underscored Guyana’s continued efforts to attract a diverse range of investors into its upstream sector as it seeks to expand production while strengthening regulatory oversight.
For Cybele Energy, the Guyana licence represents both a commercial opportunity and a strategic milestone, signalling a more assertive role for Ghanaian and African-owned companies in the global offshore oil and gas industry.
