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Ram blames Pres. Ali for troubled Gas-to-Energy project
…says lack of due diligence costing Guyana billions
(Kaieteur News) – From a string of delays, a bankrupt contractor and now a ballooning project cost, Attorney Christopher Ram has said that President Irfaan Ali must take responsibility for the troubled Gas-to-Energy (GTE) project at Wales, West Bank Demerara.
During a recent appearance on Oil Talk, hosted by the Oil and Gas Governance Network (OGGN) and aired on Kaieteur Radio, the Chartered Accountant criticised the Ali-administration for clearly not conducting any due diligence before awarding a US$759M contract to an American consortium, Lindsayca/ CH4.
“They clearly didn’t have one (due diligence). We understand that they adopted something from maybe the previous government…the President has surely got to take responsibility for this and at some point, he must get serious,” Ram told listeners of the broadcast.
Attorney, Christopher Ram
Further, he pointed out that Guyana seems to have a historical problem that spans various administrations where managing massive projects is concerned. He however noted that given the state of the economy and society, it is incumbent on the Ali-government to quickly learn from its mistakes and implement better systems.
To qualify his position, Ram argued that Lindsayca/CH4 should not have been handed the multimillion-dollar contract in the first place, a fundamental error that could have been avoided by conducting simple due diligence on the contractor.
He said, “I have looked at the Financial Statements of Lindsayca. They should not have been awarded any kind of contract…I notice the timing and this gentleman from EXIM Bank and so on coming into this place, whether he was forced on us and why did we do it? Just because we want to say that look, the Americans lent us money? They lent us money to waste on an American contractor who did not qualify for the job if you look at the performance and the financial stability. They were in serious, serious trouble.”
Earlier this month Kaieteur News reported that the Chairman of the United States Export Import (US EXIM) Bank, John Jovanovic visited the troubled GTE site at Wales, for a first hand assessment of ongoing construction activities, amid a series of damning revelations that came to light through this publication.
He was accompanied by Prime Minister, Mark Phillips who holds responsibility for the energy sector, United States Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot and Chair of Lindsayca Guyana Inc., Nelson Drake. During his visit to Guyana, the Chairman also met with President Ali. This newspaper reported on the tender process that led to Lindsayca/CH 4 being hired and the company’s inexperience, tainted track record and appointment of Project Director, Ruben Figuera- a former PDVSA executive under the Nicolas Maduro regime in Venezuela.
Further, cheaper bids were ignored by the government of Guyana to engage the company which submitted the highest bid and demonstrated a troubling financial position. Sources also leaked undisputed information on luxury flights chartered by the company to not only transport its executives on a weekly basis, but to import materials for the project at a much higher rate. More recently, Kaieteur News exposed Lindsayca for allegedly utilising shell companies abroad o further inflate project costs.
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