Guyana’s Petroleum Road Map – Guidepost 6: The Break-even Price and Unit Cost

Introduction

Today’s column links my ongoing assessment of Guidepost 6 in Guyana’s Petroleum Road Map (that is, the average (unit) total costs for its crude oil export) to my previous presentations in this series on Guyana’s projected indicative price range per barrel of oil equivalent (boe) for its expected petroleum exports. Today I introduce the concept of a break-even price. This price exists from both a private commercial perspective and the fiscal standpoint of government.

As far back as two and a half years ago, I had elaborated in two successive columns, published during November 2016, on the notion of the break-even price for Guyana’s petroleum exports. Today’s and next week’s columns on this topic have, consequently, benefitted from those earlier efforts.