By Kiana Wilburg
When it was announced in May 2015 that Guyana had discovered oil and gas at the Liza-1 well in the Stabroek block, there was a seismic shift in newsrooms, particularly at the one I was attached to.
Many of my days and nights were spent reviewing over 100 oil agreements used by other countries, scanning the benefits they garnered and understanding how they wasted those riches. From Angola to Venezuela, I have documented and reported on almost every conceivable ill that could befall Guyana.
Suffice to say, with every contract and case study I dissected, it became clear that oil and gas management could make Guyana a king or a pauper. Neither I nor other media houses were the only ones writing about the dangers of mismanaging this black gold.
Before a drop of oil was pumped, Guyana was a nesting ground for oil sector experts, think-tanks, former government advisors, analysts of every description, and businesses seeking a foot in the door. It was a frenzy.
Oil started pumping in December 2019 from the first FPSO—Liza Destiny. As the oil flowed, so too did the lessons about being unprepared and moving at a snail’s pace. The APNU+AFC Government at the time wasted precious time as it failed to prepare locals for opportunities in the sector.
Fast-forward to August 2020, when the Irfaan Ali-led regime was elected to government, consultations were held with stakeholders at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre (ACCC). In defiance of the oil sector’s plea that a Local Content law was not needed, the government passed the landmark legislation in December 2021.
Since then, Guyanese have benefitted from over US$1 billion in employment and procurement opportunities. With Guyana expected to produce over 1.7 million oil equivalent barrels per day from eight projects, there will be an astronomical growth of local content benefits.
Believe it or not, that is just part of the story. All this time, Guyana’s local content benefits have been hinged on oil production. The second wave is coming!
The government has outlined several major gas-related projects that are poised to revolutionise Guyana’s position as a powerhouse in the region.
These projects include:
- The Wales Gas-to-Energy Project, set to come on stream in 2026. It will include a 300MW power plant and a Natural Gas Liquids plant.
- A second Gas-to-Energy power plant is planned for Wales. It will also generate up to 300 MW of additional power.
- An industrial estate is on the cards for Wales. It will host industrial and manufacturing enterprises that will produce cooking gas, ammonia, and urea for use as fertiliser.
- Another Gas-to-energy project, which will be located in Berbice and accompanied by an economic zone
- A ship-loading terminal for Natural Gas Liquids, which will be constructed to enable the export of cooking gas to CARICOM countries and beyond.
These massive projects could be game-changing for Guyana. The partnership between the government and ExxonMobil Guyana Limited, which operates the Stabroek Block, will be crucial over the next few years in ensuring that Guyana’s plans for gas development and monetisation are realised in a timely manner.
We know from our own experiences with local content, as mentioned earlier, how value is lost when we do not move with alacrity. There is immense value to be had from Guyana’s gas resources. Harnessing this, of course, will take double the speed, prudent fiscal management, and even greater precision in execution.