Government must publish international safety certificates for the overproduction

May 01, 2023 Letters

Dear Editor

Kaieteur News – We have been assured many times by the petroleum companies here that they are operating according to international standards. These standards require inspectors to certify compliance with the standards. The Liza Destiny and Liza Unity have for some time now been operating over their safe design operating limits of 120 000 and 220 000 barrels per day (bpd) prescribed in their Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). E.g., on Feb 24, 2023, they produced 156 000 and 246 000 barrels respectively, while Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Ltd (EEPGL) and the Government narrate this brazen disregard of safety as the achievement of reaching 400 000 bpd.

Many knowledgeable people in Guyana and the in Caribbean are concerned that such blind faith in the adherence of these companies to safety procedures may lead to an oil spill ― especially as the Guyana Government is afraid of requiring these petroleum companies of limited liability to sign parent company guarantee that any damage over and above the insured figure will be paid. Isn’t this continuous exceeding of the design safety limit a much greater risk? Or does our government not understand this? A competent Petroleum Commission should have been in place to insist on adherence to standards.

Since it is elected to represent the people, the government must insist the oil companies back up their claim of safety by taking one obvious step in good governance. Publish the international certifications that allow the oil companies to operate over the safety limits!

It is no secret that the oil companies award themselves and their executives big bonuses and salary increases based upon production numbers which naturally incentivize this type of irresponsible behaviour. Good governments, who care for their country, should therefore ensure no expense is spared in being transparent towards the people in these grave matters and in implementing competent oversight, to ensure the health, safety and environment of the nation are not superseded by greed.

Yours sincerely,
Vincent Adams
Alfred Bhulai
Andre Brandli
Janette Bulkan
Darshanand Khusial
Oil & Gas Governance Network (OGGN)

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