DUBAI, July 18 (Reuters) - QatarEnergy has signed a deal

to acquire a 20% interest in a production sharing contract for

an offshore block in Suriname, it said on Thursday, boosting its

participation in the nascent oil-producing country.

Chevron ( CVX ), the operator of Suriname's offshore block

5, will retain a 40% interest, while Paradise Oil Company, an

affiliate of Suriname's state oil firm Staatsolie, will own the

remaining 40%.

Current oil output in Suriname is solely focused onshore,

but several deepwater fields have been discovered in the

country's waters since 2019. Its first major offshore oil

production is roughly four years away.

Energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie has estimated Suriname's

discovered resources at more than 2.4 billion barrels of oil and

liquids and more than 12.5 trillion cubic feet of gas.

In December, Shell, TotalEnergies, QatarEnergy and Petronas

signed production-sharing contracts with Staatsolie for three

offshore blocks.

TotalEnergies said last month that it and APA Corp ( APA ) will make

a final investment decision on the $9 billion block 58,

Suriname's most promising oil and gas project, in the fourth

quarter, aiming to begin output in 2028.

Block 58 lies adjacent to Exxon Mobil's ( XOM ) massive Stabroek

block in Guyana, where more than 11 billion barrels of

recoverable oil and gas have been found.

Block 5, which QatarEnergy announced taking a stake in on

Thursday, is located offshore Suriname in shallow water depths

of about 30-45 metres. The license is currently proceeding to

its second exploration phase with a commitment to drill an

exploration well.

"This agreement highlights our continued commitment to

exploring the promising basins of Suriname and marks an exciting

new partnership with Chevron ( CVX ) in the international upstream

sector," QatarEnergy CEO Saad al-Kaabi said in a statement.