Safety in the oil and gas industry was highlighted as a major issue when private sector representatives from Guyana and Trinidad discussed economic opportunities and threats to expediting the oil and gas industry on Friday.
Chief Executive Officer of the Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago Dr Thackwray Driver led the discussion at a forum at the Pegasus Hotel.
The forum was facilitated by the Guyana Manu-facturing and Services Association Ltd (GMSA) to provide an engagement between the Trinidad and Guyanese private sectors and to identify pitfalls that Guyana may encounter during its gas and oil industry development.
Driver said the 20 Guyanese companies that service companies in the oil and gas industry have to cooperate with their competitors, especially given the high-risk nature of many of the activities.
“It is vital that these different companies cooperate closely in order to deliver an activity safely,” he said.
Driver told Stabroek News that lots of emphasis needs to be placed on health and safety in the industry and companies need safety management systems in order to work with international operators.
Driver spoke about some of the experiences Trinidad faced and cautioned that Guyana must avoid these.
“The private sector is getting ready for the opportunities…recognising that there is lots of work that had to be done to work with international gas and oil companies,” he added. He was optimistic about the potential for collaboration “across the board” in the oil and gas industry. It is going to take a while to develop the expertise the country [needs] because it is in the very early days,” he added.
In his address, he said that there is good and bad news for the private sector. He said that there is plenty of room for small and medium-sized businesses to find a niche for themselves in a hydrocarbon industry, including for people with all levels of education achievement. Driver pointed out that Trinidad and Tobago has about 20 major companies operating in the sector but there are hundreds of companies servicing the industry. He pointed out that small sub-contractors make up thousands of businesses servicing the sector.
However, the bad news, he added, is that “it is very, very difficult to get any foothold in the industry.” He said persons who are trying to enter the industry should expect it to take a very long time, many setbacks and many disappointments. This is compounded by the fact that it will be tough to become involved in a major offshore development with a floating production storage and offtake development concept.
This is the projected concept for ExxonMobil’s Liza-1 well offshore Guyana. In May, the company reported a “significant oil discovery” there. In this circumstance, the oil will not have to be brought onshore and shipped out but all activities will be conducted at sea, Driver said.
He told the gathering that there will be high expectations in terms of the strength of their finances, insurance, safety and environmental management systems, technical competency of workers, corporate governance, as well as financial and human resource management systems. He emphasised that audits will be done on every aspect of the businesses.
