THE discovery of oil in Guyana has already impacted significantly on the economic and social life of the Guyanese people. We are still in the early stages of oil production but the projections are extremely good. According to Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, two new economically viable oil discoveries were made by Exxon Exploration and Production Guyana (EEPGL) and partners at Fangtooth-1 and Lau-Lau-1 wells offshore Guyana within the Stabroek Block. All of this may sound too good to be true, but the reality is that the country is set to double its current oil output as early as this current year and could possibly surpass a million barrels per day by the end of this decade with the discovery of additional wells.

Such production levels would catapult this country to among the highest in the world in terms of per capita output and possibly among the most prosperous in the Region. Along with revenues from oil, there will be other externalities which would enhance the competitiveness of the country.

According to Minister Bharrat, the gas-to-shore project is advancing satisfactorily, which would have a transformative impact on the country’s economic landscape. The project, which is projected to be completed by 2023, would see the transportation of gas from petroleum operations on the Stabroek Block to supply roughly 200-250 megawatts of energy to the national grid. This could see an almost 50 per cent reduction in power-generation cost, which apart from making the country much more competitive in terms of production costs, will also reduce the cost of energy to consumers.

The government has already identified the former Wales Sugar Estate as the site for establishment of the power-generation station and the construction of a petro-chemical plant that will utilise gas by-products. One of the limiting factors in terms of our competitiveness and our ability to attract investments in the manufacturing sector has been the high cost of energy, which is among the highest in the Region. The generation of electricity from gas would change the production dynamics in the country and would likely see a significant rise in investment in the country. This would impact positively on job creation and a consequential improvement in the overall quality of life of the Guyanese people.

The PPP/C administration’s development agenda includes geotechnical, geophysical and environmental studies which would result in huge industrial development that is linked not only to power generation and a power plant, but also to a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) plant.

Despite the manifest benefits that oil and gas brings to the nation, there are some who would prefer to leave the oil in the ground rather than take advantage of what the revenues from oil can do to lift the quality of life of the Guyanese people. These ‘prophets of gloom and doom’ see only the ‘dark’ side of oil and fail to see the enormous benefits that can accrue to the society from the oil and gas resource available to the country. They continue to paint a one-sided picture of oil without making any acknowledgement of the fact that the financial and technological resources, including the element of investment risks were all fully borne by the oil companies operating in the country without a cent being contributed to those investments by the taxpayers of Guyana.

This is not to suggest that with greater due diligence and better oversight of the sector by the previous APNU+AFC administration, a better deal could not have been arrived at. That however is now water under the bridge. The new PPP/C administration is on record as saying that it is prepared to take all the necessary precautions to ensure that the Guyanese people get a fair share of its national patrimony in any future contracts. But to continue to peddle a narrative of a ‘bad’ deal will not help and certainly is not in our best national interest.

Both President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Vice-President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo have given full assurances to the Guyanese people that our economy will not be driven only by oil, but that oil and gas will be an impetus to accelerate other aspects of the economy. It will provide for the country the advantage of fast-tracking other developments in critical sectors such as agriculture, education and health, in addition to fortifying the country’s climate-change efforts within the overarching low-carbon development framework.

And, as the President pointed out, even as oil and gas continue to hold out great promise, Guyana has a huge rainforest potential which has established for the country a carbon-sink identity, about which only a handful of countries can truly boast. In this regard, even as the country is diversifying its economic base with strong inputs from oil and gas, it will still be in a strong position to be a leader on the environment.

These are all visionary thinking on the part of President Ali and his PPP/C administration, which will transform not only the economy, but the lives of Guyanese in positive ways.