Govt. “backsliding” on protective, developmental oil and gas policies not serving Guyana’s interest – Jordan

Sep 03, 2022 News

---

Kaieteur News
By Zena Henry

Where former Finance Minister Winston Jordan has highlighted efforts made by the previous A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) government to work assiduously in preparation for the development of the country’s oil and gas industry, he has expressed worry over what he believes is the apparent “backsliding” of the current administration to have crucial legislation and policies to continue the work that was started to protect Guyana.

In an invited comment, the former finance minister acknowledged a number of loose ends, including the absence of key mechanisms within the local oil and gas sector, which he insists are not working in the best interest of the State. Jordan pointed out for instance that while, the last government would have seen the establishment of the country’s Petroleum Commissions as an integral agency to have developed in the earliest stage of the industry, it is still to be implemented under the more than two-year-old People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government.

Jordan reminded that a draft Petroleum Commission Bill was sent to Parliament around 2016, just one year after the announcement was made that Guyana had found oil in commercial quantities. “That is how critical we thought of this Commission,” Jordan said that “…by 2016, we were already in talks for establishing a Petroleum Commission and a draft bill was introduced in the Parliament by (former Natural Resource Minister Raphael) Trotman.” Jordan reflected that the Bill was within the reading stage and had been proposed for the select committee. While the document had made its way to the committee, Jordan highlighted, however, that it remained there as Parliament was dissolved in December 2019 with nothing further being done. He related therefore, that once Bills are still in their formative stage, and had not been passed by the time Parliament dissolved, “all those Bills died.” Despite the current administration putting the Petroleum Commission among top priority Bills, they were going to bring after getting into government, “two years on, the only legislation they have been able to pass is the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) and the Local Content legislation,” the former minister said. And even where the NRF is concerned, substantially it is from the 2019 Bill. “They took out the part dealing with transparency to put in their own version, and the rest they pulled from the 2019 Bill,” Jordan explained. He noted too that the Local Content Bill as well had substantial progress made under the Coalition where all he said the current government had to do was to take the information and run with it. “Beyond that, there has been no talk about when any other substantive legislation in the petroleum sector will be brought to the fore.”

To further prove his point about government lapses, the former minister even pointed to a recent Reuter’s interview where current Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat told that international news agency that it was no longer a government priority to draft new Production Sharing Agreements (PSA) for offshore oil development. A government delegation had gone to Texas last May for the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston. There, the minister had told Reuters that Guyana is in “no rush” to draft the new contract terms that would revamp what many believe are grossly unfavourable provisions in the lopsided 2016 agreement signed under the APNU+AFC.

Additionally, there seems to be some amount of backsliding where other issues such as depletion policy which deals with standards that set the right time and pace at which production of oil resources must take place, is concerned. In fact, in an Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) loan, Guyana was provided with guidelines for a depletion policy which the government seemed to have ignored, since the guidelines recommended Guyana pacing its oil development, while the government has taken the same approach as the oil contracts to develop the commodity as fast as possible, producing as much oil as possible. That matter, as well as a petroleum development master plan, seems not to be on the front burner, the former minister stated. “So, there are quite a number of areas that are a critical to the management of the oil sector which appear not to be on the radar at the moment.”

In this regard, Jordan insisted that, “We need less talk and more action where these matters are concerned.” He added that within the sector, there must be “some kind of national approach that will transcend government.” As such, moving towards ensuring the oil –related policies and necessary legislation are operable, the former minister said that consensus in all the areas must be sought since another government could come into power and another change could come to the NRF, for example. Jordan noted that even international specialist like, Anthony Paul, has urged Guyana to get its act together with establishing its policies and mechanisms while sounding one voice regarding the development of the sector. “Some of these critical areas need to be very much addressed and in place if we want to monitor this sector efficiently and effectively,” Jordan appealed.

---

---