This is according to an NRF Receipt published in the Official Gazette on Saturday. The payments relate to all petroleum revenues made during the period January 1, 2025 and March 31, 2025. During the period, seven profit oil payments were made and one royalty payment, amounting to USD 84,167,953.

Notably, the royalty payment was made for the fourth quarter of 2024. Additionally, two of the profit oil payments made in the first quarter of 2025 were also related to lifts made in December 2024. This means that Guyana only received USD 375,411,909.46 in total for its oil produced in the first three months of this year.

In accordance with the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement (PSA), Guyana receives 2% of oil produced sold in the Stabroek Block. It also receives a profit share, equivalent to 12.5% after ExxonMobil deducts 75% monthly towards expenses and takes another 12.5% as its profit.

In 2025, although Guyana’s daily production is expected to climb, the country will see a decrease in earnings from the sector, as a result of a projected 10.9% decline in oil price. This was explained by Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh during the presentation of this year’s Budget.

He said: “Oil prices contracted by 2.3 percent to average USD 80.7 per barrel in 2024, primarily due to slowing global demand, particularly in China.”

The Minister was keen to note that this trend is expected to continue this year as “crude oil prices are forecasted to decline by a further 10.9 percent to USD 71.9 per barrel, with global supply expected to exceed demand.”

This is particularly troubling for Guyana, since policymakers have refused to implement a ring-fencing provision to ensure the country benefits early on from the wealth generated. Not only has Guyana been urged multiple times by various international financial institutions to do so, but it is also not forbidden by the oil contract to implement this mechanism.

It is anticipated that there will be 246 lifts of profit oil from the Stabroek Block in 2025- each lift is equivalent to one million barrels of oil. Within this, Government is projected to have 31 lifts of profit oil from the three Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessels (FPSOs) currently producing, along with the One Guyana FPSO, which is expected to be commissioned in the second half of the year.

Be that as it may, Dr. Singh pointed out: “With the average price of Brent crude expected to decline to an average of USD 71.9 per barrel, Government’s petroleum revenue deposits are projected to be 2.6 percent lower than in 2024. Government is projected to earn an estimated USD 2.2 billion in profit oil and USD 340.6 million in royalties.”

In 2024, an average of 225.4 million barrels of crude oil was produced, with the sector recording 57.7% growth that year. With the price of oil averaging USD 80.7 per barrel in 2024, Guyana earned US$2.6B from oil production. (Kaieteur News)