A team led by Canadian Queen’s Counsel Alison Redford will be reviewing the evaluation of plans for the development of ExxonMobil’s Payara oil field that is being undertaken by Bayphase Oil and Gas Consultants.
The team also includes the former Deputy Minister of Energy in Newfoundland, Canada, senior international reservoir engineers and Jay Park, QC, Managing Partner of Park Energy Law based in Canada and the United Kingdom, the Ministry of Natural Resources said yesterday.
An announcement only of the hiring of Redford yesterday immediately prompted questions over her technical qualifications to conduct the review, which resulted in the ministry hours later explaining in a second press release that she would be leading a team and that she has also worked with other groups around the world to conduct similar reviews. It also detailed her experience in the field and in governance.
According to the ministry, the current review was initiated by the Department of Energy, which contracted Bayphase Oil and Gas Consultants at a sum of US$386,830 in December 27, 2019. “There was a first contract extension (no cost) to July 27, 2020 and a second contract extension to September 27, 2020 with a revised contract sum of US$429,382 which represents an 11 percent increase. This review by Bayphase Oil and Gas Consultants will be completed shortly,” it explained.
The ministry added that the new PPP/C government has decided to review the work already undertaken by the Department of Energy so that the interest of all Guyanese is protected and in keeping with international transparency and accountability standards prior to approval being given.
“It will be important to have a team of technical experts to assess progress to date and to assist the Ministry, where necessary to successfully conclude the permitting exercise. This will require coordination on ensuring that regulations are complied with and that they can be enforced. This will include environmental standards and reservoir management which is about managing how resources are developed to ensure that the interests of the people of Guyana and their resources are developed in a sustainable and responsible manner to the benefit of the country,” the release added.
According to the Ministry, Redford has served as a World Bank advisor on gas sector reform in Pakistan and also as an advisor in other jurisdictions, as they develop novel approaches to upstream regulation and community engagement.
It added that as Premier of the Canadian province of Alberta, she
introduced the Responsible Energy Development Act, which created the Alberta Energy Regulator. The Act sets out rigorous regulation, compliance and enforcement provisions on all aspects of oil and gas production, including permits and licenses.
Further, it said she also developed the Canadian Energy Strategy for Canadian First Ministers and the Transition Energy Initiative for the Conference Board of Canada.
The ministry also noted that Redford served as Attorney General of Alberta from 2008 to 2011 and as Premier from 2011 to 2014, overseeing the legislative, policy, political and financial operations of the Province with a $40 Billion CDN (balanced) budget, including, oversight of the Province’s sovereign wealth fund, international trade and pipeline policy (particularly with Washington, China and India), environmental sustainability (including climate change policy in the conventional and unconventional energy sectors, renewable energy strategies and the development of green energy sources to contribute to international climate goals and priorities.
It said she has also worked on several bilateral and multilateral projects particularly in energy sector regulation and has worked in multiple countries on behalf of the United Nations, the Commonwealth and the European Union.
“Ms. Redford, through a World Bank project, supported Pakistan Upstream Regulatory Reform as Advisor to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas on efficiencies in the gas sector, including regulatory and infrastructure reform and review of investment strategies for International Oil Companies, and worked with a team to draft the Pakistan Petroleum Exploration and Production Regulatory Authority legislation,” it further said.
As Attorney General of Alberta, it noted, she was responsible for oversight on all energy sector transactions including conventional oil and gas production and the oil sands, including leading the renegotiation of the Great Canadian Oil Sands/Syncrude Agreement on behalf of the Government of Alberta, while simultaneously advocating for integrated community engagement and stakeholder development in regulated industries, particularly in the context of climate change policy addressing both economic and social policy to mitigate long term technical risk in volatile policy environments.
“…I[]t must be emphasized that while this is a limited reflection of Ms. Redford and her team’s skills and capacity building abilities, they also have vast knowledge in the field of policies and legal framework that supports accountability and transparency within the petroleum sector,” the ministry added.
Redford stepped down as Alberta’s premier in 2014 after two and a half years following a series of questions about her leadership and controversy over expenditure on plane tickets.
In August, 2014, provincial Auditor General Merwan Saher had found Redford and her office used taxpayer money “inappropriately” during her time as Alberta premier, with planes used for personal and partisan purposes, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Saher’s report said in part: “They consistently failed to demonstrate in the documents we examined that their travel expenses were necessary and a reasonable and appropriate use of public resources.”
Saher wrote, “Premier Redford used public assets (aircraft) for personal and partisan purposes. And Premier Redford was involved in a plan to convert public space in a public building into personal living space.
“How could this have happened? The answer is the aura of power around Premier Redford and her office and the perception that the influence of the office should not be questioned.”
The terms of reference for Redford’s engagement by the government have not yet been published.
Government has said the Payara project approval will have to wait on the international oil expert’s assessment and advice, while ExxonMobil has warned that delays will reduce the value of the project and that more than a year had already been spent on the process.
The initial release from the Natural Resources Ministry said Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat yesterday met with Redford along with the heads of relevant agencies, including Dr. Mark Bynoe of the Department of Energy, Dr. Vincent Adams of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Newell Dennison of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC).
According to Bharrat, the new government is conducting a holistic review of the Payara Development Project. The release said that the review will play a pivotal role in informing the decision making relating to the application for the permits by ExxonMobil’s affiliate, EEPGL.
He emphasised that the review process takes on a multi-agency approach, which includes the GGMC, EPA and other technical officers of the Petroleum Division. “The Minister anticipates that the review will directly address concerns raised previously which will not only benefit the oil companies but ensure economic empowerment for all Guyanese”, the release added.
Bharrat also pointed out that the review is in keeping with President Irfaan Ali’s commitment to transparency and accountability within the natural resources sector.
