Govt. denies ‘disasters of oil industry unfolding in Guyana’

Mar 18, 2025 News

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Kaieteur News-  The Ministry of Natural Resources on Monday responded to an article published by Kaieteur News in its Sunday edition, where the Publisher, Glenn Lall, shared the view that the ‘Disasters of the oil industry are unfolding in Guyana’.

Collapse of fishing industry

 

In a detailed, point-for-point response, the Ministry noted the statement by Lall that the fishing sector has collapsed as a result of oil production, with fishers struggling to catch enough to cover costs and the country being forced to import fish. According to the Ministry, Guyana’s fishing industry expanded by 1% in 2024. “While fish production faced minor contractions (-2.2%), marine shrimp production grew by 8.5%, and aquaculture production expanded by 13.7%, with brackish water shrimp production increasing by 19.1%,” according to the Ministry.  Additionally, it said that the fishing industry is projected to grow 5.8% in 2025.

Importation of fruits and vegetables

 

The Ministry said that while the Publisher claims that local produce is failing due to oil activities, the other crops sub-sector grew by 10.9% in 2024 and is projected to expand by 11.7% in 2025.

Devastation of livestock

 

On his Radio programme, the Publisher told listeners that the livestock sector has been devastated. Contrary to this, the Ministry stated that the livestock sector grew by 24.6% in 2024 and is expected to expand by 7.5% in 2025. According to the Ministry, “Growth was observed across all livestock categories, including poultry (31%), pork (35.3%), beef (6.9%), eggs (7.6%), and milk (6.4%). Improved poultry health was driven by vaccinations and reduced mortality rates.”

Infrastructure

 

Meanwhile, with regard to Lall’s view that the oil sector is causing strain on the infrastructure sector, as a result of overweight vehicles, the Ministry noted that oil revenues are in fact financing critical infrastructure development, including the expansion of roads and bridges.
While there have been cases of substandard work by some contractors, government argued that there is no logical correlation with the oil sector. In the meantime, it said government remains committed to ensuring Guyana’s infrastructure is resilient and built to support economic growth, including demands from the oil and gas sector.

Accountability for oil revenue

In his comments, Lall told listeners that government has blatantly refused to show how revenues from the oil are used.  According to the Ministry, “This is a deliberate misrepresentation. Every dollar of oil revenue is accounted for within the National Budget, which is debated and approved in Parliament. Oil revenues are deposited into the Consolidated Fund, alongside other government revenues.” It added that spending plans and budget estimates are publicly available, item by item and claimed that the statement made by Lall that Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo that he “doesn’t have to tell the nation how oil money is spent” is a fabrication. The Ministry said, “The Vice President simply explained that because funds are pooled into the National Budget, expenditures are not itemized by revenue source, but all spending is transparently recorded.”

Gas-to-Energy debt trap

The Ministry argued that the Publisher’s claim that the Gas-to-Energy project is a “debt trap” and that documents are being hidden is incorrect.
In fact, it noted that the loan terms for the project are public and have been widely reported, including by Kaieteur News. The Ministry was keen to note, “The arbitration process involving a contractor is a normal contractual procedure and does not indicate failure. The government and the contractor remain committed to project completion, and allegations of secrecy are baseless.”

Weather conditions

 

For his part, the newspaper Publisher indicated that due to the flaring of gas offshore, citizens struggle with unbearable heat and are now forced to walk around with fans in their faces, while children are fainting in the classrooms. The ministry however noted that there is no scientific basis for Lall’s claim. Instead, it was explained that, “Guyana, like the rest of the world, experiences seasonal temperature variations due to climate change and global weather patterns.”
Meanwhile, regarding tsunamis, the Ministry explained that ExxonMobil’s Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) include disaster assessments, which is a standard practice.
To this end, it noted that this does not mean that a tsunami poses a serious threat to Guyana. “The likelihood of a tsunami impacting Guyana is extremely low, given its distance from seismic zones, which is an indicator of tsunami risk,” the Ministry said.

Ring-fencing

On his programme, Lall estimated that Guyana lost as much as US$20B, so far, by failing to ring-fence the Stabroek Block projects. For its part, the Ministry of Natural Resources explained, “Ring-fencing is an accounting mechanism. Without it, oil companies can recover expenses across multiple projects, even before certain projects have started production. This defers revenue to Guyana but does not eliminate it.” To this end, government pointed out that Lall’s claim of a US$20 billion loss for Guyana is pure fiction—there is no basis for this number. It also refuted claims that Brazilian officials called Guyana a “cheap prostitute” for its oil deal.

(Govt. denies ‘disasters of oil industry unfolding in Guyana’)

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• fishers struggling, Glenn Lall, ministry, Ministry of Natural Resources, Radio programme

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