Latest update March 13th, 2026 12:35 AM
Petroleum Commission urgently required to match negotiation skills of oil giants rushing to Guyana – MP Campbell
(Kaieteur News) – As Guyana embarks on a new trajectory, diving deep into the petroleum sector, the nation may be at a disadvantage, selling itself short as it fails to establish an expert team to manage the sector.
Most countries establish a body referred to as a petroleum commission, with specialists appointed to govern the affairs of the industry. The commission is established to prevent politicians from engaging in rampant corruption through under-the-table deals and underhand transactions.
APNU MP, Dr. Terrence Campbell
A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament (MP), Dr. Terrence Campbell, reiterated the importance of the petroleum commission during a party press conference on Friday.
Campbell was asked by this newspaper to share his thoughts on the new Production Sharing Agreements (PSAs) that have been inked for two smaller oil blocks, located in shallow waters, offshore Guyana, when he pointed to the need for the petroleum commission to be in place.
He explained, “I have glanced at the new PSA, it’s an improvement on what existed previously in terms of royalty, in terms of cooperation tax, in terms of cost recovery but again my preference would have been a situation where we had a petroleum commission as the law requires and where there would be opposition representatives on such a Commission to inform those negotiations.”
The MP noted that while the new oil deal features improved terms, an ideal arrangement would have been for the contract to be negotiated by experts.
According to him, “We should have a team that is skilled, understands the oil sector, understands taxation, drilling, everything because when we go up against Exxon (and other oil companies), we are going up against a company whose GDP, or gross revenues are way much larger than Guyana’s and who have the skilled human resources that they will bring to those negotiations and when we are going to negotiate with Exxon, we need to do the same and in a way that is not threatening to other investors in the sector.”
Guyana discovered oil in 2015 and later commenced production activities in December 2019. The country swiftly moved to increase production to over 900,000 barrels in a mere six years, with four Floating production Storage and Offloading vessels (FPSOs) currently operating in the Stabroek Block.
Beyond the Stabroek Block, Guyana launched its maiden oil blocks auction in 2022, securing bids for eight of 14 offshore blocks.
So far, contracts and licences have been approved for Block S4 and Block S7. As the Guyana basin continues to attract more giants in the industry, stakeholders argue that the petroleum commission is urgently needed to ensure the country is not short-changed in the negotiations stage.
This is particularly important as the deal with ExxonMobil continues to attract criticisms both locally and internationally. In fact, the contract is often defined as the worst oil deal known to the industry as it extends extraordinary benefits to the contractor, while the country is left with onerous fiscal terms and conditions that prevent unilateral changes.
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