PRESIDENT David Granger on Thursday held discussions with top oil and gas officials of Trinidad and Tobago during a meeting at his Shiv Chanderpaul Drive office. T&T Minister of Energy and Energy Industries, Ms Nicole Olivierre and Deputy Permanent Secretary in her ministry, Mr Andre Laveau, met with Mr Granger and Guyana’s Minister of Natural Resources, Mr Raphael Trotman. The Head of State said that as Guyana prepares to harness its oil and gas potential, the country is looking forward to technical support and cooperation from its CARICOM sister state. “There are mutual benefits to be derived. Trinidad has been very friendly to us in the Region, but we must be prepared to extend not just friendship, but concrete arrangements as well, which would benefit our Caribbean people; a new pattern of collaboration,” the Head of State said.
In this regard, Minister Olivierre spoke of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that was signed by the former administration in 2013 for cooperation in the energy sector and said that her Government is looking to continue that cooperation. However, that MoU has since expired and President Granger has asked that it be reconceptualised and expanded to include other areas of cooperation such as agriculture, education, infrastructure and tourism. Minister Trotman gave the assurance that the process of drafting and finalising a new MoU will move swiftly apace and said that this will be done at the level of the two permanent secretaries (Guyana and Trinidad) with a view to having something concrete by October later this year.
Earlier in the week, Minister Trotman had met with the same team and the two discussed collaboration on Guyana’s developing oil and gas sectors. Olivierre said then that the Government of Trinidad and Tobago is keen to collaborate with the Government of Guyana to lend their experience and to support Guyana in its efforts to develop its petroleum sector. “Having had several decades of experience, we can certainly assist the Government through guiding them on the various pitfalls to avoid when dealing with the multinational companies and developing the industry for the benefit of the people of Guyana,” she said.
Olivierre said that Trinidad and Tobago would certainly have advice on how to prepare the Guyanese people how to absorb the jobs that will become available because of Guyana’s recent discovery. “We certainly would like to share our technical expertise and our educational facilities to the Government of Guyana, so that the people can really benefit,” said Olivierre.
Trotman said that the engagement between the two Caribbean Governments is a good thing. “It follows on meetings held between President [of Guyana] David A Granger and Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Keith C Rowley for the two countries to draw closer and for Guyana in particular to gain knowledge, experience and expertise from Trinidad’s journey to becoming an oil-producing country,” he said. Trotman called the discussions a first and welcome step and expressed the hope that later in the year Guyana will pay a similar visit to Trinidad and Tobago to further the cooperation on the oil and gas sector in terms the of transfer of knowledge. “We are looking for scholarships for students,[and] training in terms of bringing Trinidadians here and sending Guyanese there,” he said.