A hundred years in one column
The full timeline
From Nickerie 1928 to first gas
1928
Oil found in Nickerie
The first oil in Suriname is found in Nickerie district, on the coastal plain near the Guyana border. Nothing commercial follows, and systematic exploration only begins in the early 1960s.
1965
Oil in a schoolyard
A Geological Mining Department crew drilling for drinking water in Saramacca district hits heavy oil in a school yard. That accident is the Tambaredjo field.
1980
Staatsolie is founded
The state creates its own oil company on 13 December 1980 rather than leaving the resource to foreign operators.
1982
Production starts at Tambaredjo
Commercial production starts at Tambaredjo on 25 November 1982, at 200 barrels a day. Output is small but it funds everything that follows.
1997
Tout Lui Faut refinery opens
Staatsolie starts refining its own crude rather than exporting all of it, initially into asphalt bitumen and fuel oil.
2015
Refinery expansion completed
A roughly US$1 billion upgrade lifts the plant to around 15,000 to 16,000 barrels a day and adds diesel and gasoline.
2020
Maka Central-1 changes everything
Apache and Total hit oil in Block 58. Kwaskwasi, Sapakara West and PETRONAS's Sloanea gas find follow in the same year.
2021-2022
Sapakara South and Krabdagu
Appraisal drilling proves the two fields that will become GranMorgu.
Oct 2024
Final Investment Decision
TotalEnergies and APA sanction GranMorgu, committing about US$10.5 billion. Staatsolie exercises its 20% back-in right.
2025
Financing and contracts
Staatsolie raises more than US$2 billion, including a US$516 million bond and a US$1.6 billion syndicated loan from 18 lenders, to fund its US$2.4 billion share. Saipem, SBM Offshore and Technip Energies start work.
Nov 2025
Open Door Offering launched
Staatsolie opens roughly 60% of offshore acreage, more than 70,000 km2, to nomination by companies at any time instead of waiting for a bid round.
2025
A ministry for oil and gas
The new government creates the Ministry of Oil, Gas and Environment, headed by former Staatsolie manager Patrick Brunings.
H1 2026
From blueprint to buildout
The FPSO hull enters dry dock in China, the first subsea equipment lands at the Dr. Jules Sedney Terminal in Paramaribo, and subsea trees roll off the line in Malaysia.
2026
Sovereign fund becomes realnow
All mineral revenue is supposed to flow into the Savings and Stabilisation Fund. The IMF notes the fund still needs a board, procedures and an investment framework.
Late 2026 - Q1 2027
Development drilling starts
Up to 32 producer and injector wells are planned for GranMorgu.
H2 2026
Sloanea gas decision expected
PETRONAS targets an FID on a floating LNG development in Block 52.
2027
FPSO sail-away and hook-up
The vessel leaves the yard for Suriname; installation and commissioning offshore follow.
2028
First oil
GranMorgu is targeted to start producing, ramping toward 220,000 barrels a day. The IMF projects GDP growth around 55% in the first full year.
~2030
First gas
If Sloanea is sanctioned, Suriname could export LNG for the first time. The IMF sees crude output peaking around 73 million barrels in 2030 and 2031.
What has to happen before 2028
The critical path
Finish the FPSO
Topsides integration in China, then commissioning. This is the long pole: the vessel has to be complete enough to sail before anything else matters.
Drill the wells
Up to 32 development wells starting late 2026 or early 2027. Each one takes weeks, and the campaign runs in parallel with vessel construction.
Install subsea infrastructure
Trees, flowlines, risers and umbilicals placed and tested on the seabed. Saipem's scope.
Sail, moor and hook up
The vessel transits from Asia, is moored on location and is connected to the subsea system.
Commission and start up
Systems are proven, wells are opened, and production ramps. First oil is the moment stabilised crude reaches the storage tanks.
What could move the dates
Slip risk, plainly stated
| Risk | Effect |
|---|---|
| Yard or commissioning delay | The single most common cause of FPSO slippage. Pushes first oil directly. |
| Development drilling pace | Fewer wells ready at start-up means a slower ramp rather than a later start. |
| Sloanea FID timing | If the Block 52 gas decision slips past 2026, first gas moves out from around 2030. |
| Oil price | A sustained fall changes appetite for the next final investment decision, not GranMorgu itself, which is already sanctioned. |
| Institutional readiness | Does not delay production, but the IMF has argued it determines whether the revenue is handled well. |
After first oil
What the forecasts assume
The IMF projects roughly 55% GDP growth in the first full year of production and sees crude output peaking near 73 million barrels in 2030 and 2031 before declining. Staatsolie has pointed to government oil revenue of US$1.5 to 2 billion a year at peak, with something in the order of US$7 billion across the first five production years.
Those numbers assume one project. Extending the plateau depends on tiebacks and on new sanctions from the blocks covered on the blocks page. Where the money is supposed to land is on the institutions page.
Where this comes from
Sources
Figures on this page come from operator announcements, Staatsolie, the Surinamese government and the energy trade press. Projects move, so treat forward-looking dates as targets rather than promises.
- Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname N.V.
- Ministry of Oil, Gas and Environment (OGM)
- TotalEnergies: GranMorgu project
- Offshore Magazine: Suriname offshore E&P frontier (Jun 2026)
- OilNOW: GranMorgu H1 2026 progress
- IMF: Suriname 2025 Article IV Consultation
- SEOGS: Suriname Energy, Oil & Gas Summit
Page data last reviewed 2026-08-02.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did Suriname find oil?
Oil was first found in 1928 in Nickerie district, and again in 1965 in Saramacca, where a crew drilling for drinking water hit heavy oil in a school yard. Commercial onshore production started at Tambaredjo on 25 November 1982. The offshore story began in 2020, when Apache and Total hit oil at Maka Central-1 in Block 58.
When is first oil in Suriname?
2028 is the target for GranMorgu, the first offshore development. There is no published date within that year. Onshore production has been running continuously since 1982.
When will Suriname produce gas?
Around 2030, if PETRONAS sanctions the Sloanea development in Block 52. A final investment decision was targeted for the second half of 2026, with floating LNG the leading concept.
What happens after first oil?
GranMorgu ramps toward 220,000 barrels a day, and the IMF projects Suriname’s crude output peaking around 73 million barrels in 2030 and 2031. Beyond that depends on new final investment decisions and on tiebacks to the existing vessel.