E-Networks on Wednesday granted Minister of Finance Winston Jordan, a tour of its subsea station, even as questions remain unanswered regarding what laws governed the granting of the permit for the project and the National Telecommunications Agency (NATA) continues to dodge answering.
For more than six months Stabroek News has been attempting to elicit a response from NATA’s Andre Griffith to no avail.
On Wednesday the Ministry of Finance released a statement informing that Jordan was given a tour of the E-Networks subsea cable landing and that he had lauded the investment by the local consortium and congratulated Managing Director Vishok Persaud “for the boldness of the investment”.
Both the statement and the company failed to specify who the local consortium of investors are, but it was pointed out that Jordan said that he was particularly impressed with them and that the project was organised and successfully executed.
Located in Kingston, George-town, the facility, according to the statement, houses the E-Networks’ Xlink cable, a newly constructed submarine fibre optic cable that links Guyana to Barbados.
“The Finance Minister further said that the Xlink project exemplified the ideal investment model for Guyana, one in which local benefits, local content and indigenous ownership are guaranteed through the collaboration of Guyanese companies, Guyanese investors and local financial institutions, especially now that the economy is poised for transformation,” the statement said.
But questions remain about which government agency gave permission to E-Networks to land the cable here and under what law.
It was the telephone company, GTT, which had first expressed concerns about the project. Chief Executive Officer Justin Nedd had raised the concern that E-Networks was laying a subsea cable without the necessary approvals.
“GTT is very concerned that E-Networks is laying subsea fibre with complete disregard for necessary approvals and international protocols,” Nedd said.
He stated that he hoped that the rule of law would be observed, even as he highlighted that GTT had reached out to E-Networks.
“We have attempted to reach out to E-Networks to facilitate the construction in accordance with international protocols, as this… disregard for established protocol threatens the security and integrity of our SGSCS (Suriname-Guyana Submarine Cable System) subsea cable. As the only reliable method of international connectivity into Guyana, any damage to the SGSCS threatens the internet connectivity of the entire country,” he explained.
“It is our hope that the observance of sound rule of law, as well as acceptable and ethical business practices will be upheld within the country’s telecommunications sector by both existing and potential players in the market,” Nedd added.
The Ministry of Public Telecommunications distanced itself from the granting of the permit saying that it was not responsible for such.
“Under the current regulatory dispensation there is no requirement for the permission of the Minister of Public Telecommunications for the landing and operating of submarine cables for conveying broadcasting services. Given the above circumstances, the Minister of Public Telecommunications has not granted nor denied permission for landing of a submarine cable for conveyance of broadcasting services,” a statement from the ministry, back in September of last year, had said.
It was following the ministry’s statement and GTT’s concerns that E-Networks responded. And while it said that it was granted necessary permits, it did not state from which agency or when.
“We are… in possession of all necessary approvals in relation to this project for its intended purpose,” the statement had said.
It responded to the GTT CEO’s assertions and disputed the claim that it did not have requisite permits.
“Mr Nedd has been disingenuous in his claim that we are not in receipt of required approvals, particularly in his specific reference to our operation with an expired environmental and construction permit from the Environmental Protection Agency. As a point of fact, E-Networks has never been without a valid EPA permit in relation to our project from May 1, 2018 to present,” the statement said. It added that it has all the “necessary approvals” in relation to the project’s intended purpose.
