…deems it “sensationalist, agenda-driven and extraordinarily speculative”

… says US$55B figure “random, arbitrary and highly speculative” 

The APNU+AFC coalition has deemed Monday’s report published by the UK-based research firm,Global Witness, as “baseless” noting that that the missive presented absolutely “no evidence of corruption or malpractice on the part of the Government or its officials.”

According to a release issued by the administration on Tuesday evening, it views the report as cunning and calculated attack on a sovereign state with a duly elected Government mere weeks before an election.Guyanese are preparing to go to the polls on March 2, 2020.

“This timing cannot be seen as a coincidence and it appears as though it is seeking to influence the electoral outcome,” the government said.

According to the government, the author of the report makes the preposterous assertion that Guyana “should allow no additional drilling in the Stabroek license” and “should also cancel its nine other allocated licenses and not award any new licenses”.

This, the government said, “is arbitrary and utterly absurd.”

It questioned on what basis the watchdog group sought to impose its proposition that the people of Guyana must not benefit from the country’s natural resources as the peoples of other countries have done freely for millennia.

“The Government reiterates, as do other credible international agencies, that it entered a fair agreement for the people of Guyana.”

It said those benefits include:

• 50 per cent profit oil
• 2 per cent royalty
• Withholding taxes
• US$18,000,000 signing bonus
• Over 1900 persons directly employed in oil and gas sector to date
• Over US$300M in foreign direct investment to date
• Over 700 service providers to date

It was noted by the APNU+AFC administration that it maintains its position that there were geo-political and national security imperatives which could not be ignored.It said that the report deliberately seeks to trivialize the national security and sovereignty of Guyana.

“Further, Global Witness completely ignores the analyses and reviews done by credible companies such as the Norway-based Rystad Energy and experts including Sir Paul Collier of the prestigious Oxford University,” the government said.

In its report on Guyana,the government said that the widely respected oil and gas analytical firm Rystad Energy stated, “[i]n the current fiscal regime, the government collects its share through a 2% royalty and a 50% profit oil levy. Rystad Energy estimates that this will give the government 60% of the profit from the various projects (government take). The average government take of 60% in Guyana is indeed favorable when compared to other large offshore producers. [F]or countries that only recently opened up for [Exploration and Production] activities – such as the Falkland Islands, Israel, Mozambique and Mauritania – the government take is in the range of 50% to 65%.”

In addition, the administration quoted a responding article in FORBES Magazine which the latter described Global Witness’ missive as “An ideologically-motivated attack piece aimed at some of the biggest players in the oil and gas industry. Which, given the group’s history, comes as no surprise at all.”

It was noted that Global Witness in its report,” maliciously attempted to discredit officials of the Government” including Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman, who it noted,was part of a Cabinet approved Government of Guyana delegation, on an official visit to Houston.

The administration pointed out the contradictory aspects of the report.It said that after  being heavily reliant on innuendo and conjecture, the report actually states, “Global Witness is NOT suggesting that Trotman’s Texas trip violates US or Guyanese anti-corruption laws,” and that, “Global Witness does NOT allege that Trotman deliberately negotiated a bad deal, or deliberately ignored information that would in fact have got Guyana a better deal.”

The administration explained that Global Witness was unable to establish any corruption or malpractice whatsoever on the part of Government, or any of its officials. At all material times, it said,officials of the Government of Guyana acted with the knowledge and authority of the Cabinet and on the basis of credible advice.

Not having been able to establish any corruption, Global Witness then pivots and engaged in a flight of fancy. The figure of $55B is random, arbitrary and highly speculative, the government noted.

In fact, it said that Guyanese are assured of earning tens of billions of United States dollars in the years ahead and would have unprecedented and bountiful amounts for investment in their wages and salaries, pensions, education, health care, security, infrastructure, sea defence, agriculture, hinterland development and for future generations through Guyana’s already established Natural Resource Fund.

“It is time that the people of Guyana enjoy the right to self-determination and their own destiny without interference of foreign influences.Countless organizations have shared our optimism based on sound economic analysis of Guyana’s projected growth and development,” the government said.

It mentioned Nasdaq, and other regional and multinational agencies such as the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), which have noted that Guyana is the fastest growing economy in the world and expected to experience vast wealth as a result of its oil and gas agreement.

“Further, these agencies have hailed the positive steps taken in setting the foundation for the prudent fiscal management of the resource,” the administration said.

The government said it acted decisively in allowing for first oil to have been celebrated in less than five years, an unprecedented and historic achievement.

It said that all Guyanese are imbued with a deep sense of pride and patriotism that they are now citizens of an oil producing nation and are urged not to allow anyone to steal their joy and good fortune.

The Global Witness report created a stir on social media on Monday and gained prominence in sections of the media, however, on Tuesday a FORBES Magazine report punched holes in Global Witness report.

Also, on Tuesday,Rystad Energy released a report which stated that Guyana stands to gain total annual revenues of US$30B within 10 years.

The research firm stated that with a population of around 80,000, Guyana’s economic fortunes are poised for a major transformation after its first-ever oil development commenced production just six weeks ago.