— energy chamber says Adams’ call for ‘Exxon’ to cease operations is unwarranted

EXTREME actions against stakeholders in the oil-and-gas-sector could stave off foreign investors and even dampen investors’ confidence altogether, the Guyana Oil and Gas Energy Chamber (GOGEC) has said.
Guyana is at an important juncture in its history, with investors pouring into the country and economic activities abuzz, despite the pervasive novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This increased interest in the local economy is stimulated by the country’s burgeoning oil-and-gas-sector and other productive industries.
It is for this reason that President of GOGEC, Manniram Prashad, has advised against taking any “extreme action” which could stymie progress.
The chamber’s advice followed a call by former Head of the Environmental Protection Agency, Dr. Vincent Adams, for ExxonMobil to cease operations until it resolves issues which are contributing to the increased flaring of gas.

It was reported recently that the production levels at ExxonMobil’s operations offshore Guyana have been reduced in order to accommodate the repair of a gas compressor, which became defective due to a technical problem related to a seal.
The result of this inoperable compressor has been increased gas flaring, an exercise which does not augur well for the environment. With this being the case, ExxonMobil has started working expeditiously to rectify the problem.
“I wish to assure you that teams of experts from ExxonMobil, SBM Offshore and MAN Turbo are working diligently to fix the compressor and return it to service as quickly as possible,” President of ExxonMobil, Alistair Routledge, said in a recent statement.
Considering ExxonMobil’s clear efforts of remedying the situation, Prashad believes that Adams’ call is unwarranted and unnecessarily extreme in this circumstance.
“While any excessive flaring is unacceptable, GOGEC is cognisant that with regards to the specific matter, the Government of Guyana and ExxonMobil and its partners are currently addressing the matter,” he said in a statement on Thursday.

Prashad said it is imperative that the nation appreciates and understands that the global oil industry is heavily capital intensive, and, by its very nature, an extremely risky business.
“Not only is the nature of the oil industry business one that is highly risky but this is compounded by high regulatory costs in other countries whose industry is heavily regulated and of course – risks of oil spill which is also very costly to oil companies,” the GOGEC president said.
Owing to the investments made by ExxonMobil despite those risks, the burgeoning oil- and-gas sector has caused Guyana’s Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) to reach US$1.7 billion, which is an increase of US$1.4 billion or 536 per cent from what Guyana’s normal average level of FDIs was before becoming an oil producing country. With ExxonMobil being such an important partner in Guyana’s long-term development, Prashad believes that it is unacceptable to tolerate any unnecessary calls for extreme consequences towards the company.
“GOGEC, therefore, wishes to urge all stakeholders to seek to obtain win-win situations in these matters rather than a strong-arm approach. This may not be healthy for the country’s and ExxonMobil’s mutual interest,” Prashad said.