French energy giant Total has taken out an option for a quarter stake in an oil block offshore Guyana, according to Reuters.
Total paid Canadian firm Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas $1m for the option, giving the French firm the first rights to purchase the 25% share of the Orinduik block for a further $12.5m if they so choose.
If Total opts for the full share it would drop Eco Atlantic’s stake to 15%. London-based Tullow Oil is the biggest partner with 60%.
The waters off Guyana (a former British colony in South America) have been a focal point for exploration since ExxonMobil’s 2015 discovery of the huge Liza field in the Stabroek Block.
