-says will assess all legal options
CGX Energy Inc has informed the Government of Guyana in writing of its view that its licence for the the Coren-tyne block remains in place and in good standing and the Petroleum Agreement has not been terminated, contrary to government’s position on the matter.
In a release yesterday, CGX Energy announced that together with Frontera Energy Corporation, its joint venture partner in the Petroleum Prospecting Licence for the Corentyne block offshore Guyana, it has responded to the recent letter received from the Government of Guyana, as described further in the joint press release dated February 10, 2024.
The release stated that the government has been advised that, among other things, despite the government’s contradictory positions, the Licence and the Joint Ven-ture’s Petroleum Agreement with the government in respect of the Corentyne block “remain valid and in force.”
Further, it noted that in the Response Letter, CGX and its partner have contested the government’s purported termination of the Licence, including the grounds for such termination, as further described in the Letter.
“The Joint Venture remains firmly of the view that its interests in, and the license for, the Corentyne block remain in place and in good standing and the Petroleum Agreement has not been terminated. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Joint Venture continues to assess all legal options available to it to assert its rights in respect of the Licence and the Petroleum Agreement.”
It added, “The Joint Venture looks forward to expeditiously resolving this matter and continuing its multi-year efforts and investments to realise value for the people of Guyana and its shareholders from the Corentyne Block.”
Guyana this year issued a 30-day notice of cancellation to the CGX Energy and Frontera Energy joint venture’s licence. The company had until the 22nd of this month to defend why it should not be evicted.
In December last year and following the expiration of the exploration licence of the joint venture, the government announced that it had ruled out going back to the table for renegotiations and if the company wasn’t satisfied with that stance they could go to court.
“We have made it clear, the term under which the licence [was issued, has] expired. And therefore… when they are required to do or take some actions under the licence and they fail to comply, then there is no issue to discuss. The licence expired. If they have a different interpretation, they can go through the legal process,” Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had stated.
“You can’t negotiate on something that you actually don’t have. As far as we are concerned and the legal advice is, their licence lapsed because of the conditions under the licence and the timeline for the licence itself. That is our position at this moment,” he added.
The Vice President’s posture came following a release from the company that said statements from the government had caused the company substantial harm.
