The presence of hydrocarbons

 

To-date there have been giant oil and gas finds in Venezuela, Trinidad & Tobago, Columbia, Mexico and the USA along with modest finds in Cuba, Suriname, Belize, Barbados, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Dominican Republic and Panama.  In addition there are reports of  oil and gas seeps in all Central American and Caribbean countries.

Outside the key petroleum producing areas Noble Energy is already exploring in Nicaragua, the Jamaica license round has attracted considerable interest, PGS has acquired a new seismic survey offshore Honduras and BHP has applied for acreage offshore Barbados.

Studies to date by CaribX have focused on understanding and unraveling the geochemical origin of the various oils already reported throughout the region. Two main oil families appear to be present and can be traced across the Lower (Siuna) and Upper (Chortis) Nicaraguan Rise.

Seepage onshore Dominican Republic

Continental reconstruction

One key to locating regions with greatest petroleum potential is the use of palaeo-reconstruction modules to help determine palaeo-environment hence likely source presence type and character.

The fiscal terms

We are now in a long period of stability in the region following decades of turmoil and conflict which discouraged oil exploration activity from the 1970’s to the 1990’s.

Renewed interest has been fuelled by the following: a highly successful licensing activity in Colombia,  the current Jamaican license round, the fact that Honduras has recently launched their “Honduras is open for Business” campaign and also in March 2011, the  Caribbean and other Latin American countries held a day long investment seminar in London.