(Adds production estimates)
By Sabrina Valle
HOUSTON, June 22 (Reuters) - U.S. oil producer Hess Corp. expects an increase in cash flow of 25% per year for the next five years with oil remaining about $75 per barrel, Chief Executive John Hess told an investor conference on Thursday.
The increase will stem primarily from its low-cost oil production in Guyana and in the Bakken shale field in the United States, he told investors at the JP Morgan Energy, Power and Renewables conference.
Up to 75% of that annual free cash flow will be returned to shareholders, he said.
The company, which holds a 30% stake on Guyana' Stabroek block operated by Exxon Mobil Corp., expects oil production from the next three platforms planned for Guyana to exceed designed capacity.
The first two production vessels can reach a combined peak production of 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil and gas, against a designed capacity of 340,000 bpd, thanks to reservoir performance, he said.
If the expectation for the next three platforms is confirmed, total production would exceed the 1.2 million barrels per day of oil and gas projected by 2027.
The consortium, in which Exxon has a 45% stake and Chinese CNOOC a 25% stake, is negotiating with Guyana's government a one-year extension to 2027 of the oil exploration license for Stabroek block, Hess said. (Reporting by Sabrina Valle; Editing by Mark Porter)
