Suriname is losing out on dozens of millions

Kosmos Energy has already invested $300 million during the past 8 years that it has spent looking for crude oil in Suriname’s sea territory.

Most of the things that the American upstream oil company needed could have been purchased in Suriname but the undeep waterway in the Suriname River ‘encouraged’ the company to make its purchases in Trinidad. There are about 10 companies active in the sea territory and nearly all of them go to Trinidad to buy spare parts, equipment and consumer goods.

Kosmos Energy explained certain things to Times of Suriname that should be food for thought for government officials. “Very little is bought locally by the international companies that are looking for oil in Suriname’s sea territory because we can’t establish a primary base due to the undeep waterway of the Suriname River,” Tom Fauria vice president and Country Manager of Kosmos Energy Suriname told Times of Suriname. He deemed it regrettable that Suriname is losing out on a lot of income that could have been used to boost the development of Suriname but the company has no other option if it wants to continue with the exploration activities near the coast. The inefficient commercial sea freight sector does not attract oil companies to Suirname. Next year Kosmos will drill another exploration well. But if the waterway remains undeep Suriname could miss out on hundreds of millions and maybe even billions during the pre-exploration phase. Trinidad will then once again get the lion’s share of the pie. Dredging the waterway will not be enough because the local companies must also be able to deliver the materials that the oil company needs. If they fail to deliver, Trinidad will also earn most of the cash. The Caribbean island is already earning dozens of millions from the exploration ships that are off the coast of Suriname.