-cites unforeseen obstacles for delays
Following criticisms over its two-year delay in plans for the Enmore facility it entered into a deal with government for, local machining company, Guysons, yesterday said it had encountered a number of unforeseen obstacles and would begin working at full capacity in the “near future’.
The company also lamented that it had trained over 75 persons and nearly half of them left for other opportunities.
“On behalf of the company, we are pleased to confirm GKB Enmore will be working at full capacity in the near future, a first of its kind for the nation, equipped to deliver regional oilfield services,” the company said in a statement through its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Faizal Khan.
Guysons said that it had experienced unanticipated delays, as any other growing local firm would. “The sudden passing of the founder of Guysons, Kads Khan, weeks after announcing the GKB Investment into Enmore with myself and HE President (Irfaan) Ali. Further delays on contractors to repair the Enmore facility roof, installation of 3-phase power, lawyers finalising the title deed paperwork, international bankers assessing the stability and feasibility of the Guyana oilfield industry, are but a few normal items that take time to progress a major investment, which is happening at GKB Enmore,” Khan stated.
The CEO informed that training and employment of persons to work at Enmore is ongoing, but pointed to high attrition rates for local companies as they are now competing, especially in the oil and gas sector, with foreign companies whose incentives are greater.
He said too that local companies need persons who are willing to work long hours.
“To win and retain manufacturing work cost effectively, against more established foreign entities, Guyanese based firms will need skilled local people, who are willing to work long hours to get the job completed on time, every time,” Khan said.
“Guysons are proud to have trained over 75 local workers at Enmore in basic oil and gas, as well as basic health and safety. A lot of this training was in collaboration with the Centre for Local Business Development (CLBD) and took place at the Enmore Sugar Estate compound with GuySuCo workers. Over half of those GKB trained and certified, when offered roles with GKB, decided to take employment elsewhere,” he added.
Nonetheless, he said that training for local people will continue and extend, as GKB grows its order book for oilfield work required.
Earlier this week, the Alliance for Change (AFC) addressed the nearly three-year-old agreement the government had made with Guysons that is still to materialise, and underscored the need for accountability in many aspects of the deal that were still not public.
“The venture was to bring a vital industry to the East Coast corridor, revitalising the area and creating 150 jobs in the first year and 500 by year five. Yet, despite the promise, here we are—nearly three years later—with barely any trace of the promised facility,” the AFC said in a statement.
Grand
“When the grand announcement was made in early 2022, many expected swift progress on the much-touted Enmore Manufacturing Facility. Guysons K+B Industries Inc (GKB), a joint venture promising a massive US$37.5 million investment to support the oil and gas sector, had chosen Enmore as its site, reportedly at the government’s suggestion.”
The AFC said that in the initial announcement, GKB painted a bright future for Enmore, “a buzzing centre of industrial activity and job creation. Yet, with each passing day, Enmore residents see none of the promised benefits.
“The citizens of Guyana have a right to know why their assets are being handed over without results or answers.”
The agreement was signed in a blaze of publicity two years ago followed by the dismantling of the Enmore Sugar Packaging plant which is still to be reassembled. A planned machining investment had only begun startup in March this year.
When this newspaper had asked the CEO of Guysons for an update in June this year, he became agitated and questioned why this newspaper was interested in private work.
The AFC pointed to the agreement, noting that the government had leased the joint venture 55 acres of prime land, “practically handing it to GKB on a silver platter.”
“… This land was meant to become a hub for oilfield services, providing services that are currently outsourced overseas. Instead, it sits largely untouched, the promised investment becoming little more than a memory of a fanfare announcement.”
Khan said that the AFC cannot claim the project has been given to a friend of the government, as his father was a known former PNC parliamentarian and supporter. He also called this newspaper a “tabloid,” which was not following the ethics of journalism.
Khan had become irritated when pressed by the Stabroek News for updates on the facility and had called a reporter attached to the newspaper to register his disquiet over a report, saying that he had given off-the- record information which he saw reported in a past article. However, at no time did this newspaper refer to any conversation with Khan, but simply reported on what sources close to the project had disclosed.
Last November, a representative of the company had said that repairs were currently underway in preparation for the facility to be transformed to accommodate the $7 billion (US$35 million) machining project.
The representative had said that more comprehensive updates would have been forthcoming.
Khan related yesterday that his project is “not a quick, easy, or inexpensive, investment,” as other investors in the sector would understand that “the industry eats up lots of cash for long periods of time, and is truly a 24/7 business.”
He said that repurposing a “GuySuCo sugar facility to international oilfield manufacturing standards, again takes time and money. New CNC machine equipment and material for Enmore, have been built from scratch and imported from countries [such as] Germany, USA, and Japan. These highly technical machines and equipment then have to be safely packed and crated, ocean freighted, custom cleared, logistically delivered, technically installed, electrically powered, customer collaborated, [and] quality approved by patented licensors and oilfield customers, to be fit for the intended purpose at Enmore.”
“This is to name but a few of the technical steps required before any oilfield customers’ work can commence on any machines. What it is not, is a plug and play.”
The AFC had questioned why the government has not provided any updates and what steps the company has taken, to date, to realise its promised commitments.
“GKB’s commitment to ‘strict land development timelines and milestones’ seems more like empty rhetoric than reality. What guarantees exist to hold the company accountable? The job targets, which should have been met by now, remain unfulfilled. If this is an example of the government’s commitment to job creation, it’s falling short. How much longer will citizens wait for results? With national resources and taxpayer money at stake, Guyanese citizens deserve answers. Why hasn’t the government provided clear updates on the status of the facility? What steps, if any, have been taken to ensure the fulfilment of GKB’s commitments? And why was such valuable land handed over with so little accountability?” the AFC questioned.
The Enmore Manufacturing Facility, the statement contended, “is not just a business; it’s a symbol of how the government values public trust, transparency, and responsibility to the people.”
