After hours of questioning, a Financial Paper for approval of $61b in supplementary financing was approved at around 10.45 pm yesterday, pushing consideration of a key petroleum bill into this morning.
At press time, the Petroleum Activities Bill 2023 was set to be taken up as Parliament prepares for a two-month recess.
The government last Thursday tabled the financial paper in Parliament for supplementary funding to the tune of $61 billion for the period ending December 31st, 2023 and a major item is community roads.
Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, presented Financial Paper #3 on the supplementary provisions which showed current estimates and capital estimates amounting to $10.18 billion and $50.83 billion respectively.
The National Assembly resolved itself into the Committee of Supply yesterday just around 11 am, allowing the Opposition the opportunity to pose questions to the various ministers about the amounts they were seeking for the various ministries. This continued up to 10.45 last night with the Speaker of the National Assembly Manzoor Nadir upbraiding several opposition members throughout the day for repeating the same question in different formats, making statements and not sticking to the specific line items which were being addressed at the time – instead, the Opposition members opted to digress from the specific line items several times with what they sometimes deemed as ‘follow up questions’ coming out of the answers provided by the ministers.
Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand while being questioned seemingly grew nonplussed at the repetitive questions and pointed out that the funds were being sought for the further development of the various sectors. In answering “What I can tell you is that $52,000 per term simply cannot do, you’re talking about $15,000 a month, we are coming here and we are asking you to give Diamond Nursery more than $600,000 per term and you are objecting… You’re finding all kinds of objections here. This is quite embarrassing.”
Manickchand continued, “You (Opposition members) stand up and say how we love children and so and you’re asking all kinds of questions that could interfere with these children getting the benefit of this money.”
She then asked the opposition, “Are you giving the $600,000 or not? That is the question on the table… I am here asking for this allocation to be approved so that children in this country can learn comfortably, I am asking instead of giving a Grade A school $90,000 per term, I am asking to give them $890,000 per term. That’s what we are asking for, it will go to the school. The important issue is if you approve this money who gets it?”
Fabrication
After receiving a sum of $6oom to facilitate works on the Demerara Harbour Bridge, the Ministry of Public Works through the financial paper was seeking an additional sum of $568m to undertake critical rehabilitation works, specifically for the rehabilitation and fabrication of the high span & pontoons.
After having been allocated $31 billion in this year’s fiscal plan an additional $25 billion is expected to be allocated to the Ministry of Public Works towards the construction and rehabilitation of community roads.
An additional $1.5b & $1b will be allocated towards the rehabilitation of hinterland and urban road works respectively.
Despite a voted provision of $3.6b for the construction of the four-lane Wismar/Mackenzie Bridge, a supplementary provision of $2.1 billion is also being sought.
An additional $600 million has been earmarked to address emerging threats along the sea and river defenses network. The voted provision was $3.5b.
The Kumaka and Supenaam stellings which have already been assigned $240m will now receive an additional sum of $32.7m to facilitate emergency works.
The Kingston Goods Wharf, Kumaka, Morawhanna & Port Kaituma Stellings are also slated to receive additional financial provisions of $2.5 billion to facilitate advancement works after receiving a sum of $2.1 billion.
In relation to the Ministry of Housing & Water, an additional sum of $500m will go towards infrastructural development and buildings, followed by an expanded work programme for vulnerable communities. The voted provision was $50b.
The Renewable Energy Improvement – Power System Project which falls under the ambit of the Office of the Prime Minister will see an additional sum of $45 million once the paper is approved.
The Gas to Shore Energy Project will see an added sum of $5 billion to support the advancement of transmission and distribution initiatives. The voted provision was $43.3b
Petroleum activities
Meanwhile, the Petroleum Activities Bill which was on the order paper for the second reading yesterday was not debated up to press time.
The Bill whose main purpose is to provide for the exploration, production, storage, and transportation of petroleum in Guyana is expected to replace the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Act of 1986.
According to the Bill, the Minister shall be responsible for the administration of this Act, which responsibility shall include the general management of the petroleum resources of Guyana in accordance with this Act or any other written law.
Powers and duties of the Minister under the Bill, include the licensing of petroleum exploration, development, production, transportation, and storage operations, including the geological storage of carbon dioxide, the prescribing of subsidiary legislation, and the issuing of such guidelines as may be necessary for effectively carrying out the purpose of this Act, coordinating and cooperating with relevant agencies of the state regarding the environmental and safety aspects of petroleum operations, the monitoring of the conduct of petroleum operations to ensure compliance with this Act, and the terms and conditions of a license or permit granted, or a petroleum agreement entered into under this Act, and any other written law.
Additionally, the Minister will also be responsible for directing persons conducting petroleum operations to perform corrective actions where there is noncompliance with this Act and the terms and conditions of a license or permit granted, or petroleum agreement entered into, under this Act and any other written law, and imposing sanctions for non-compliance with this Act; developing terms of reference and prescribing qualification criteria for the grant of a license, giving licensees or holders of a permit directions as to any matter with respect to which regulations may be made under this Act, doing any and all things required by any direction given under section 17 and recovering such costs and expenses incurred for doing so in the same manner as revenues due to the State; directing that such studies and investigations, as the Minister deems fit, be done; and exercising any other powers required for the management of petroleum resources and operations carried out under this Act.
Further, the Minister shall, as soon as may be practicable after a license has been granted or renewed under this Act, publish a notice in the Gazette stating the name of the licensee and the coordinates of the area in respect of which the license has been granted.
Subject to section 78, the Minister shall assist the holder of a license under this Act to obtain ancillary rights required for the purpose of exercising the rights granted by the license or a petroleum agreement, which may include – a right to enter upon land and carry out petroleum operations, a right to use and occupy land for the construction of buildings, the installation and operation of production facilities, the laying and maintenance of pipelines and storage infrastructure and carrying out all other related works as may be required for the purpose of the license or petroleum agreement, a right to use water, and a right to build roads, bridges, or other enabling or preparatory infrastructure works as may be required for petroleum operations.
“Subject to subsidiary legislation made under this Act, the Minister may, by notice served on a licensee, give to the licensee any direction, consistent with best international industry standards and practices, as to any matter with respect to this Act and that direction shall be complied with within the time specified in the notice by the Minister or, where the time within which the direction shall be complied with is not specified, with all reasonable speed and as often as the occasion for such compliance arises.”
Notably, a licensee who fails or neglects, without reasonable cause, to comply with any direction given under subsection (1), shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of five million dollars and in the case of a continuing offense, one million dollars a day for every day the offense continues.
Notwithstanding the conviction of a licensee under subsection (2), the Minister may cause to be done all or any of the things required by the direction given under subsection (1) to be done, and the costs and expenses incurred in doing so shall be recoverable by the Minister in the same manner as debts due to the State may be recovered.
Also, the Bill states that a government official or member of parliament, or a family member of a government official or member of parliament shall not acquire or hold any legal, equitable, or beneficial interest in a license granted under this Act.
