Barbados opens 19 deepwater blocks to oil bidders, testing its climate brand

Barbados has put 19 ultra-deepwater blocks out to tender under its 2026 Offshore Petroleum Direct Negotiations, inviting energy companies to bid on acreage that early seismic work suggests could hold large but still-unproven volumes of oil and gas. Pre-qualification runs through September 1, with awards targeted for review in January 2027, and the government has reserved the option to take a stake in any future production. The move sits awkwardly beside Prime Minister Mia Mottley’s global profile as a climate advocate, and it places Barbados alongside Guyana and Suriname on a south-eastern Caribbean exploration frontier that diaspora investors are watching closely.

Source: Rio Times (June 25, 2026).