The presence of the hydrocarbons within the Basin has been proven by the discovery of the 1 Billion barrels STOIIP Tambaredjo and Calcutta Fields onshore Suriname, and presence of the oil and gas shows in most of the wells drilled offshore (Figure 15)

Figure 15

Shell carried out an oil slick study on Landsat and Spot images in 1995. Even though the Landsat Imagery was hindered by the perennially cloudiness of the region, they detected seven oil-slick areas. These areas are interpreted as the source points of leaking hydrocarbons, which indicate that there is a charge of very light oil. The maximum confidence level is about 70%, based solely on the shape and lack of ship tracks in the neighbourhood of the slicks. The leak sources are indicated on the map as diamond shapes (Figure 16).
 

Infoterra carried out a global seeps study in 2003 using radar satellites (ERS and RADARSAT) which provide cloud free imagery. The result is depicted on the map (Figure 16) as block intensities. Note the high seep densities in eastern offshore Suriname. The highest intensity is observed just north of the Tambaredjo-Calcutta Oil Field.