QatarEnergy has announced the purchase of a 20 percent stake from Chevron, a US energy company, in offshore Suriname. Under the agreement, Chevron will remain the operator with a 40 percent stake, while Paradise Oil Company, a subsidiary of Suriname-based Staatsolie, will receive the remaining 40 percent.

Block 5 is located in the western part of Suriname’s shallow-water shelf, near northwest of the capital Paramaribo, with depths of 30-45 meters. The second phase of exploration in Block 5 is currently underway with the drilling of an exploration well. The Suriname-Gaiana Basin is one of the most prospective basins for exploration in the South American region, with the potential to discover large hydrocarbon reserves. Wood Mackenzie has estimated the discovered resources in Suriname at more than 2.4 billion barrels of oil, as well as more than 354 billion cubic meters of gas.

QatarEnergy recently entered into a long-term naphtha supply agreement with Japan’s NEOS, Idemitsu Kosan, and Marubeni Corporation for 10 years each.