What had appeared several months ago to be encouraging signs of movement towards technical assistance from Trinidad and Tobago in developing an oil and gas sector in Guyana, now appears to be languishing in uncertainty. Neither side has made a definitive pronouncement on the pace of progress since July last year when a visit here by a delegation from Port of Spain led by the twin island republic’s then Energy Minister Nicole Olivierre ended with a commitment on both sides to the signing of a memorandum detailing the areas of cooperation by November, then by the end of last year.
Not only is the promised Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) still to be signed but earlier this week Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman told Stabroek Business that “there has been no movement at all” though the two sides “had exchanged several drafts of a MoU in consultation with our respective Ministries of Foreign Affairs.” In his communication with this newspaper, Trotman restated what he had said earlier about the replacement of Olivierre as the country’s Energy Minister. In his most recent communication he stated that her replacement had taken “leave of absence” though he said that Guyana “expects to be approached formally soon.”
That notwithstanding, the deafening silence on the issue, despite the Keith Rowley administration’s public pronouncement regarding Port of Spain’s interest in providing Guyana with technical assistance in its quest to become an oil-producing nation has given rise to enquiry about the likely future of bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the oil and gas sector. While the vast majority of technical support for the building of an oil and gas sector in Guyana is expected to be met by extra-regional expertise and technical assistance, cooperation between Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, if it materializes, is likely to be seen as a feather in the cap of regional cooperation.
During Olivierre’s high-profile visit here last year she had met President David Granger and had also provided a well-publicised briefing on the anticipated outcomes of the planned cooperation. Olivierre had told the local media that Granger had expressed a keenness to work with Port of Spain in the development of Guyana’s oil and gas sector and that he appeared particularly interested in the role that Trinidad and Tobago could play in helping to build capacity locally in fields related to the development of the sector including engineering.
While there appears to have been a significant slowing down in the official engagement between Georgetown and Port of Spain over support for Guyana’s oil and gas pursuits, there is evidence of continued interest in a possible collaborative pursuit at other levels. Just over a week ago, President of the Trinidad and Tobago Energy Chamber Dr Thackery Driver was quoted in the media as publicly urging companies in the country’s energy sector to capitalize on Guyana’s energy market, asserting that there was “huge” opportunity in the oil sector in Guyana especially with the ExxonMobil find.
