Government has admitted that more can be done to sensitise the public on various areas of the oil and gas sector, especially residents of far-flung rural communities and areas outside Georgetown.
In an interview with Guyana Times International, Business Minister Dominic Gaskin expressed support for more sensitisation exercises across the country, noting that they did not even have to take the form of expositions and summits. He revealed that he has made promises to approach the Centre for Local Business Development (CLBD) in this regard.
“Certainly, I do (support the call)… I certainly agree that information on the oil and gas industry needs to be made available to all 10 regions in Guyana. In fact, I was in Port Kaituma over the weekend and we had a discussion at a town-hall meeting with residents and business persons. And they were concerned with getting information on the opportunities in the oil and gas sector.
“I have promised them that I would discuss that with the (CLBD). So, I agree it is important to have this information disseminated as widely as possible. And there are a number of ways this can be done. It doesn’t necessarily mean we have to host GIPEX [Guyana International Petroleum Business Summit & Exhibition] in every region, but there are other ways of getting the information out.”
He acknowledged that such information would have to be both relevant and beneficial to locals. This means, he noted, local companies having access to experts in the oil and gas industry.
CLBD
When the ExxonMobil-funded CLBD first opened, Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman had said he strongly recommended that workshops be held throughout the 10 Administrative Regions to inform the citizenry of the opportunities on offer.
Areas of opportunity include marine operations, safety equipment, fabrication, inspection, civil construction, warehouse, and last but not least, catering.
According to CLBD Project Director Patrick Henry, the Centre would conduct courses such as financial management alongside IPED and other partners, among other initiatives.
“The Centre has a supplier registration portal,” Henry had related to the media. “And we ask that businesses come in (and) register in the portal. From there, we’ll do assessments of businesses. We’ll run training classes to help them in areas like understanding the offshore oil and gas sector, and see what opportunities they have.”
“We’ll help them in areas such as safety, health, and the environment. (We’ll give them) an overview to understand what that means for the oil and gas sector as well as other sectors. And then we’ll conduct courses through our partners. (Courses) like financial management or supply chain management training, which allows them to access the opportunities upcoming,” he added.
ExxonMobil, its contractors, the broader oil and gas industry, and the Government would be able to utilise the CLBD for sourcing local vendors and services.
Now that it has opened the CLBD, ExxonMobil will, over a three-year period, work with DAI Global to transition the CLBD into the hands of Guyanese management.
GIPEX
Asked directly about GIPEX, Gaskin noted that the Business Ministry only assisted with the coordination of the Natural Resources Ministry organised event. But he noted that the event was from all accounts a success.
“From all accounts, I’ve been told it was a very successful summit,” he said. “Those who attended seemed very satisfied. My understanding is there were a number of meetings between local private companies and foreign companies and there have been a number of joint ventures discussed.
“I don’t know if we have any signed contracts and signed arrangements, but certainly, there have been discussions about joint ventures and I believe there are expectations that from the summit will come a number of joint ventures.”
The GIPEX summit was held at the Marriott Hotel with hundreds of foreign and local delegates last month.
