It is the clause in the Exxon contract covering environmental responsibility that concerns me

How people see Guyana’s Oil is how they would behave in managing the oil industry. Is it Bharrat Jagdeo’s (Oil Czar) Oil? He would get to call all the shots like oil contracts, how the money is spent, etc. Is it ExxonMobil’s Oil? They say how much money we get. Is it Guyana’s Oil? – managed for Guyanese, their Parliamentary Representatives would have a say on oil contracts and how money is spent. Which is it?

It is Guyana’s Oil but we have a contract with ExxonMobil to extract the oil. It’s not a contract set in stone as it can be renegotiated if both sides agree. So the claim of sanctity of contract is basically a red herring. I do not want to dwell too much on oil as people will think that I have oil on my brain. What concerns me is the clause covering environmental responsibility. Simply put, in case there is an oil spill Guyana has to pay. Nothing new here as there was Omai devastating the environment and they got away with it. Now they are back for more. Where is Dr. Vincent Adams of EPA fame when you need him?

I am no environmentalist but I can see that a major oil spill will wipe out flora and fauna in the whole Atlantic Coastal region and possibly drift inwards into the Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice rivers. Property values will plummet as no one will want to live in oil sludge villages, towns and City. Guyana does not have the resources and capacity to combat a major oil spill.

Sincerely,

Sean Ori