As Guyana continues to avoid solving long-standing and ingrained problems, as the political and business elites of all stripes continue to keep the majority suffering and poor, all this forfeiting much value for future generations, I reflect on the last few years as Guyanese achieved first oil and are approaching elections. Below are some of…
I am flabbergasted how casually most Guyanese are lured into the belief that oil is the elixir to all their troubles, and that magically Guyana is going to be transformed into a culture of abundance.Except for a few scholars and jaded oil industry professionals, there seems to me a condition of national willful ignorance and…
Every Man, Woman and Child in Guyana Must Become Oil-Minded – Part 81 – January 3, 2020 Introduction This column should have continued my take on Local Content. I will defer this to a later piece so that I do not miss the very focus on this series: the Road to First Oil. Readers will…
Almost two years after the government signed the oil contract with ExxonMobil, it was made public, but only after months of constant pressure from this newspaper and other media outlets. From all indications, it was a poorly negotiated contract with a meagre two percent royalty, which is considered the worst of all negotiated oil contracts…
2019 has been an unforgettable political year for Guyana, if only for the indelible and extreme breaches of our Constitution and Court Rulings following the No Confidence Vote and the grand finale confession coming three years after the signing of a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA), when the APNU+AFC administration represented by Minister Raphael Trotman, casually…
Former Petroleum Advisor to the David Granger administration, Dr. Jan Mangal, believes that Government must make available publicly, the field preparation plans submitted for the development of oil fields in Guyana’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Stabroek Block. Petroleum Specialist and Former Advisor to the David Granger Administration, Dr. jan Mangal Dr. Mangal argues…
I applaud Counsel Sanjay Datadin (KN Dec 15) for his courageous warning of the fear that Guyana could become another Angola.Those of us who studied economics (especially at the post-graduate or doctoral level) would know that Angola (in southern Africa) is a typical illustration of the oil curse (having enormous natural resources and wealth, but…
International lawyer and environmental activist Melinda Janki has called on members of the United Nations to request Guyana to halt all oil activities until human rights are protected. The Director of the Justice Institute Guyana (JIG) has also requested that the special rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment be invited to make a visit…
Jan Mangal, oil and gas consultant and former petroleum advisor to the president of Guyana:“Guyana is an opportunity for the oil industry to prove to the world that it does not have to be exploitative and predatory when operating in weak or fragile countries. The size of the initial spike in growth due to oil revenue…
