1H Discoveries at Lowest Point in 21st Century

1H Discoveries at Lowest Point in 21st Century
Global discoveries of conventional resource volumes dwindled in the first half of this year.

Global discoveries of conventional resource volumes (CRV) dwindled in the first half (1H) of this year, according to Rystad Energy.

The company estimates that CRV discoveries stood at 4.9 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) in 1H 2020, which is the weakest performing first half of the 21st century, Rystad highlights. Resource volumes were said to be 42 percent lower and discovery numbers were down 31 percent compared to the same period in 2019, Rystad revealed.

Rystad estimates that the average monthly discovered volumes so far this year stand at 810 million boe, which marks a 34 percent drop from the same period last year, according to the company. The monthly average was pulled down primarily by June, which only saw three small onshore discoveries, Rystad noted.

January and May were said to be the most successful months in 1H due to “significant” discoveries such as Jebel Ali in the United Arab Emirates, Maka Central in Suriname, Uaru in Guyana and 75 Let Pobedy in Russia.

Russia, South America and the Middle East account for about 73 percent of the total discovered resources so far in 2020, according to Rystad, which revealed that the period saw a total of 49 conventional oil and gas discoveries. Of these, 27 were said to have been announced during the global lockdown and travel restriction period.

“Last year we saw the highest volumes of discovered resources since the last downturn,” Rystad Energy’s upstream analyst Taiyab Zain Shariff said in a company statement sent to Rigzone.

“Based on the large number of high-impact exploration wells planned for this year, 2020 was meant to follow the same path. But then Covid-19 struck and the oil market crashed in 1Q20, resulting in delays and cancellations as operators cut budgets,” Shariff added in the statement.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com



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