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‘There can be no limit $$ for oil spill protection’ – Chris Ram
…questions Govt’s use of state resources to defend Exxon
(Kaieteur News) – Chartered accountant and prominent attorney, Christopher Ram has criticized the recent decision by the Court of Appeal to overturn Justice Sandil Kissoon’s 2023 ruling which ordered ExxonMobil to provide Guyana with an unlimited parent guarantee for oil spills.
In an invited comment, Ram who has been advocating for transparency and good governance stated his position plainly, “I totally disagree with the Court of Appeal’s decision. The Court would be aware that there can be no real price placed upon a major oil spill…in Guyana’s case, we are dealing with multiple wells operating in close proximity offshore. With every additional well, the cumulative risk necessarily increases, however remote the risk attached to any individual operation may appear,” the lawyer reasoned.
Chartered Accountant and Attorney, Christopher Ram
In explaining his point that there can be no limit set on oil spill coverage, Ram cited the Exxon Valdez disaster and the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe which had devastating consequences, costing tens of billions of US dollars, with impacts stretching decades.
To this end, he noted that he finds the “strict interpretive approach troubling”. The lawyer pointed out that environmental legislation is not ordinary commercial legislation but exists for the protection of the public and national interest. To this end, he suggested that the law should have been interpreted in a broader and more “purposive manner” consistent with the constitutional guarantee of a healthy environment.
Moreover, the Chartered Accountant highlighted the use of state resources by the government of Guyana (GoG) in fighting against full oil spill protection for the country.
He said, “I also believe citizens are entitled to ask why the State found it necessary to expend its own resources defending the position of the oil companies rather than advancing the interests and protections sought by its own citizens. Exxon is entitled to defend its legal position. But the protection of Guyana, its environment and its people must remain paramount.”
It would be poignant to note that this was not the first instance where the GoG joined with ExxonMobil in fighting against citizens of Guyana. Back in 2022, Publisher of Kaieteur News, Glenn Lall filed an action to challenge the Petroleum Agreement, dated June 27, 2016 between the Guyana Government and the oil companies.
According to Lall the agreement between the oil company and the government grants exemptions to persons other than licensees, which violate the Petroleum Exploration and Production Act, the Financial Administration (and Audit) Act and the Constitution. Lall was fighting for the companies to pay their fair share of taxes owed to Guyana but the case was strongly defended by the GoG and dismissed by the High Court a year later.
It was reported last week that Justice Sandil Kissoon’s 2023 ruling ordering American oil giant ExxonMobil to provide Guyana with an unlimited parent guarantee for oil spills, was unanimously overturned by the justices at the Guyana Court of Appeal.
In the absence of the unlimited oil spill guarantee, stakeholders argue that Guyana will be left to foot expenses related to such an event that can not only devastate Guyana, but the Caribbean region.
Exxon has provided a US$600 million insurance package and has reportedly lodged US$2B as an added layer of financial protection to the country. Given the rapid pace of offshore production, this limited protection continues to cause concern.
In the meantime, government has made it clear that it must determine the level of protection the country should receive to cover an oil spill and not the Court.
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