ExxonMobil headquarters justified

Feb 16, 2023 Letters

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Dear Editor,

I read with deep interest the statement of Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo in the media where he stated that: “the ExxonMobil’s Headquarters currently being constructed at Ogle East Coast Demerara (ECD) is cost recoverable, and is justifiable considering the scale of the activities being undertaken at the facility” (Guyana Times 13^th February,2023).  Vice President Jagdeo further went on to say: “To manage a million barrel a day industry, from a safety and operational perspective, you need a building of that nature. A high end building. Also, with advanced capabilities” (Guyana Times 13^thFebruary, 2023).

Personally, I agree with Dr. Jagdeo’s and the Government’s supportive position that he has taken for ExxonMobil to construct such a multimillion-dollar state-of-the-art headquarters here in Guyana. I was in support of Vice President Dr. Jagdeo’s previous position that he had taken on the matter where he, prior to 2020, had indicated that a construction of such a multimillion-dollar headquarter facility by ExxonMobil should not be cost recoverable and that if the headquarter building continued in that form; his party, which was in opposition then, would not support the construction project being cost recoverable (Guyana Times 13^th February, 2023).

Such a multimillion-dollar, state-of-the-art, high-tech facility for ExxonMobil to house its headquarters here in Guyana has now become absolutely necessary and is crucial and very important to the extensive oil exploration activities that the company is presently carrying out in Guyana. I will highlight some significant reasons why the construction of the headquarters should be allowed and receive the support of all Guyana:

1. It is cost recoverable: Vice President Dr. Jagdeo in his statement (Guyana Times 13^th February, 2023) indicated that ExxonMobil is currently renting space and when the cost of rental is considered, it would approximate to almost the cost of amortizing the building over time. He agreed with Routledge that the new headquarters would be constructed to support solely the oil exploration operations of Exxon and the cost will be recovered in the cost recovery mechanism. Renting of space accounted for a huge fraction of the company oil expenses (Guyana Times 13^thFebruary 2023). Therefore, by all accounts, this is a financially feasible project with huge savings for the company and Guyana at large.
2. The facilities that the headquarters will house: The headquarter building will feature training facilities, an operations suite, and a control center for all the offshore operations, the fibre optic cable which will come from floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessels, staff residential quarters, etc. These are features that are necessary to effectively support the exploration of oil in Guyana waters and clearly a state of the art, high tech facility is required to house such facilities.
3. The extensive oil exploration activities conducted in Guyana by the company. Exxon is projected to be producing 600,000 barrels of oil per day by next year when the facility is completed and over 1 million barrels of oil per day by 2027. The extent of Exxon Mobil oil discoveries includes a long list of over 20 projects in the Stabroek Block. No doubt you will agree with me that a company with such extensive oil exploration ventures does indeed need a state-of-the-art headquarters to effectively carry out its developmental activities.
4. The revenue to be generated by the company from the oil discoveries. Revenues which we hope would be used wisely for the development and improvement of all the people of Guyana in the area of Infrastructure, Education, Health Care, Creation of job opportunities for the citizens, and the environment in a sustainable way. The Department of Public Information (DPI) stated that: “Guyana expects US$957,874,800 revenues in 2022, US$1,165,443,900 in 2023, US$1,335,315,100 in 2024, and US$1,781,842,700 in 2025. These figures, accounting for profit oil, royalties and interests, amount to US$5,240,476,500. In Guyana’s currency, that amounts to nearly $1.1 trillion.” (DPI January 29, 2022. ExxonMobil made US$55.7B in 2022, and though, there is understanding and acceptance that ExxonMobil earned some of its billions from the Permian Basin and other places, plus other businesses, Guyana’s high-quality, oil was a significant contributor to the company’s profits that are now the envy of the world (Kaieteur News 11February, 2023). It is precisely because of these huge financial earnings and the economic development of Guyana that Exxon needs to have its state-of-the-art headquarters constructed to carry out its exploration activities in and environmentally sustainable effective and efficient way.

We, as the people of Guyana, must realize than Exxon is not our enemy and without Exxon and its affiliates how would we possibly exploit our resources? We have no technology, no satellite locating system, management skills, technological skills, PR skills etc., etc. I say that we embrace ExxonMobil, but we must have full insurance protection to cover Guyana and other nearby countries. We must have ringfencing (ringfencing prevents customers of public utilities from credit risks or exposures of the parent company that may harm customers’ access to essential services).

In the early days of ExxonMobil coming to Guyana, I appealed to them to look at the human factor of the Guyanese and our environment for generations to come. ExxonMobil should be concern with its international reputation which is not of the best. However, to use Guyana as the opportunity to showcase its humanity and care for peoples and our country. I am no enemy of Exxon and I welcome their presence. Together let us partner for a successful venture for both Exxon and Guyana.

Sincerely,

Hajji Dr. Roshan Khan (Snr.)

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• Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, ExxonMobil, Government, Hajji Dr. Roshan Khan (Snr), Vice President

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