Latest update April 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 12, 2022 Editorial
Kaieteur News – Where else in the world would something like what is happening with the Wales gas-to-energy project (GTE) take place? Where on this planet could there be the equivalent of such distorted governance practices and leaders, like what is encountered in the PPP/C Government? And which other place on earth could there be the parallel of a public institution like this country’s hogtied and helpless Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)? Rather sadly, the answer to all three questions is the same: Guyana! Guyana! Only in Guyana.
There is no approval from any source in this State, but ExxonMobil is already on the move with reports of investments in the project commencing six months ago (“Exxon signals “aggressive” push on Gas-to-Energy project”, KN October 11). There are only a couple of conclusions that any reasonable person could come to when that development is considered. First, it is that the decision-makers at ExxonMobil are reckless gamblers, who are pushing their luck in the hope to make yet another big investment strike in Guyana. The history of this American oil supergiant is filled with all manner of questionable elements, but being gamblers and reckless are not ever present. The people at ExxonMobil know what they are doing, operate from positions of strength and conviction, and make project decisions most wisely. To say this differently, ExxonMobil is racing ahead in its “aggressive” manner because there is no doubt in the top levels of the company that the Wales GTE will be approved, is a done deal.
Second, this means that without a comprehensive, independent, reliable, as in truly trustworthy, study what Guyanese on the sidelines are watching unfold is both game and gimmickry. The assurances from the PPP/C Government, and its leaders, have no substance, lack the backing of genuine facts and figures. There is this US$2B GTE project, and prices keep spiralling the world over, and new and robust supporting financials are nowhere in the information or conversations coming out of the PPP/C Government. What is now obvious is that all the talking and posturing by Vice President Jagdeo relative to the GTE are a matter of going through the motions. It is for the record, and a sham, given that the ExxonMobil’s Project Manager, Mr. Freidrich Krispin, could let the cat out of the bag and inform one and all that his company is ahead of construction curve, since that commenced six months ago. As the KN article referenced above noted, the necessary approvals have not been granted, but ExxonMobil is now six months ahead of the clock in its rush to get its part of the Wales project completed while Guyana sleeps. Somebody with considerable authority, virtually unassailable power, must have given the green light to ExxonMobil to go ahead because there is nothing that could interfere, or would be allowed to interfere.
Certainly, it would not be Guyana’s EPA, which is forced to look on like a handcuffed spectator while ExxonMobil moves ahead with investments, pipelines, and construction. This is despite the clear requirements of Section 21(1) of the EPA Act, for the appropriate construction permit to be issued beforehand. As much as Guyana needs investment and cheap electricity, is it still a country of laws, and rules and regulations? When Project Manager Krispin of ExxonMobil could make the kind of proud announcement that he did at the Guyana Basins Summit, then he furnished the best answer to that question. It is that when this precious oil and rapid deployment ExxonMobil are involved, then there is no meaningful stewardship at the national level, or at any level.
ExxonMobil is a government within a government, a government by itself in Guyana. When all the oil and gas developments are studied with fairness and balance, a strong case could be made that America’s oil superpower, ExxonMobil, is the superior government in Guyana. The sweep and scale of its reach and power trump that of the PPP/C Government. It is the biggest, most powerful governing force in Guyana, in that it submits to no local law, has the national government and national leaders eating from its hands, and pleased for the privilege of doing so. Only in Guyana could such a state of affairs flourish.
Please share this to every Guyanese including your house cats.
Apr 19, 2024
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