– Aberdeen Chamber of Commerce, GCCI sign MoU

GUYANA has strengthened its business relationship with the United Kingdom (UK) as the country records its successful participation in the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Offshore Europe Conference and Exhibition held in Aberdeen, Scotland, this month.
The event, which stretched from September 3-6, enabled businesses and country representatives to engage directly with technical experts in innovative technology from over 1,000 suppliers on the international market.

Among the Guyana delegation were public and private-sector executives such as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) Owen Verwey; Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dr Vincent Adams; Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) President, Nicholas Boyer; Guyana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Frederick Hamley Case; British High Commissioner to Guyana, Gregg Quinn and others.

The event was attended by over 15 Guyanese businesses, and was facilitated by the GCCI and the British High Commission.

At an Aberdeen-Guyana Gateway Networking event on September 4, Ambassador Case told the gathering that Guyana is at a critical point of its development and relies on cities such as Aberdeen for good guidance.

He stated that the new friendship between Guyana and Aberdeen has made possible the signing of a two-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce and GCCI.
The MOU will allow the two countries to support each other at various levels of business growth and prosperity.
“It can now be seen that the relations between Guyana and Scotland is not just about

diplomatic or government bilateral connection, but a relationship fully endorsed by the private sector of our two cities and countries,” he said.
“As we move forward as an oil-producing nation in 2020, it is hoped that we can advance this relationship and similar events like this in Georgetown as well. The Aberdeen-Georgetown relationship is developing into an important mechanism for both our economies and we will continue to build on this foundation and explore more business collaboration for the benefits of both countries.”
Plans for development

At the event, the Guyana Onshore Fund – a concept moved by Peter Hambro Limited (PHL) and Dr. Lei Wang (LW) – was also pitched as an in-demand investment vehicle targeting Guyana’s economy and its impending boom.
The fund aims to identify future Guyanese economic cornerstones; market the fund to investors through an authorised broker and see investors capitalise on the investment vehicle.

The involved parties could also work to establish a source or fund manager; have the fund manager direct investments by the fund and eventually invest the fund’s capital to earn a return for investors.

Dr Lei Wang said that cornerstone investors have indicated a willingness to be a part of the Guyana Onshore Fund to the tune of US $100M.
There are no direct investments in hydrocarbons but potential allocation targets include port facilities and cranes; fuel and bunkering; marine services; engineering and maintenance; wet and dry docks; healthcare; catering services; commercial office space and warehouses and storage.

The purpose of the presentation at the networking event was not an invitation or solicitation for investment, but a means of describing a concept under discussion.
Should it materialise, the prime movers will engage the services of authorised persons to see that all regulatory conditions are met.

Last November a mission from Guyana, which included public and private sector stakeholders, visited Aberdeen.

Discussions coming out of the visit were focused mainly on education, trading and skills development.
The effort was reciprocated when Lord Provost, Mayor of Aberdeen, Barney Crockett and Scotland’s Energy Industry Council visited Guyana in March.