Foreign companies often advocate the use of a “stability clause” in the quest for certainty of contractual provisions. This clause seeks to secure the oil contract and benefits therein for the oil operator, against future government action or changes in the law. Stabilization clauses freeze the essential provisions of the contract. Different countries have used…
In order to capitalize on oil discovery here, the Government of Guyana must renegotiate the current petroleum agreement with ExxonMobil and its affiliates to reflect an increase from a two percent royalty to 10 per cent. This view was shared by Chartered Accountant, Nigel Hinds, who provided Kaieteur News with a detailed breakdown of opportunity…
Making prediction in a complex and nonlinear world often involves identifying initial conditions and then sequentially reasoning (or solving) forward. One way of knowing how well Guyana will do with its newfound oil and gas resources is to consider the initial conditions that exist in the country today. In this column and future ones, I…
The controversial Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) signed between the government and ExxonMobil’s local subsidiary and partners is final and will not be subject to any changes, Minister of State Joseph Harmon said yesterday. “The President has said it—that we have dealt with the ExxonMobil contract and that we are not going back on it. It…
I thank the Ministry of Natural Resources for a courteous response to my recent letter (‘Exxon’s environmental record does not bear scrutiny’ SN, March 8). However an assurance that the government is “carefully and assiduously” building the capacity of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Marine Administration Department and the Civil Defence Commission rather misses…
Downstream is the processing and selling of refined products in the oil and gas business. These products just do not include gasoline and diesel, but a whole gamut of products as outlined below. The “super majors” like ExxonMobil are involved in many elements of these processes as joint venture partners in hundreds of money-spinning projects. This…
Dutch Disease explained Does a person have it? Definitely not, it is not a medical condition; it is an economic condition. In the 1960s, much natural gas was found off the coast of Holland. By the 1970s, the oil and gas rush in that country had raised the value of the DUTCH Guilders (the name of the…
Guyanese should understand the goal of the oil and gas contractors: drill, extract and burn all the oil and gas resources it can acquire whenever it can in a game to balance the demand and supply globally. Guyana is just a small fish in this big pond and this is why we must always put…
On February 14th, the third anniversary of the Cummingsburg Accord which masterminded the victory of the APNU+AFC coalition at the 2015 general elections, President Granger was asked whether the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) between his government and ExxonMobil subsidiary, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEGPL) would be renegotiated. His answer did not rise…
Seeking advances on future revenue from ExxonMobil should be under discussion, according to United States-based Guyanese business professor and accountant Floyd Haynes, who says the benefits for a developing nation like ours are incalculable and can outweigh the disadvantages “I think it should be considered. You are borrowing against future revenues. There are …benefits to…
