–Chevron, Petrobras, Total signal interest in oil & gas

GOVERNMENT is expected to release some additional agreements it would have signed with various entities before the end of this month.

And while on the subject of agreements, several oil firms, among them California-based Chevron; Brazil’s Petrobas; French oil and gas firm, Total; and Italy’s E&I have all signalled an interest in Guyana’s petroleum sector.

Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman told reports on Thursday during a press conference at the Ministry of Natural Resources on Brickdam that in relation to the agreements of which he spoke, letters have already been sent to the various entities.
And, based on the responses he’s received so far, there is every indication that there is no objection to the agreements being made public, some of which are expected to be released before the end of January.

In late December 2017, the government and American oil giant, ExxonMobil released the production-sharing pact both parties have agreed to.
Minister Trotman said on Thursday that by so doing, the government has “broken from the past”, in that past administrations, going as far back as 1966, have never before gone public with their dealings.

Giving an update on the ongoing interest in this country’s petroleum sector, Minister Trotman told reporters that Chevon has “made a very good application” to the government, and has even indicated that it plans sending a team here as early as next week.
He said that the government may very well make a decision on the firm’s application before the end of the first quarter of 2018.

Responding to questions about Exxon’s presence here, Trotman said the government is confident that it can partner and develop a long-term relationship with the firm.
He recalled being assured some time ago by Norway’s production directorate that Exxon is “a good company” with which to get into business, and that the government is constantly being advised with regards to its approach to the sector, be it advice for or against.

What he does know for sure, he said, is that the world is “excited” about Guyana, a case in point being a recent Bloomberg article saying “the Number One hot-spot for oil and gas exploration is a tiny South American country called Guyana.”

To cap it all, he said there is “something” about Guyana that the rest of the world is seeing “that a few people in Guyana with loud mouths and good writing skills are not.”