Opinion
Ambassador Holloway’s Mathematical Misstep: Unraveling the Numbers
Every Man, Woman and Child Must Become Oil-Minded (Part 67) Introduction “You couldn’t do the math”, said Ambassador Perry Holloway in his interview with reporters published in Stabroek News last Tuesday December 9, 2018 as he exhorted us Guyanese to educate ourselves about the fortune coming our way from ExxonMobil’s oil. Let us allow the…
Oil, Government Take & Spending: Navigating Guyana’s Development Challenges – 25
Introduction In last week’s column, I had indicated that there were two proposals, which I wished to offer on the tenth topic on my list of “top-10 development challenges.” That topic is “Integrating PSA Revenues into the National Budget.” These proposals are: First, a call for a major framework policy indicative plan early on in…
The Loan Conundrum: Questions Surrounding Oil and Gas Governance Funding
Every Man, Woman and Child Must Become Oil-Minded (Part 66) Introduction Mr. David Patterson, Minister of Public Infrastructure, offered a commendably prompt but strange response to last week’s column by way of his December 8 letter to the editor “The 2019 budgetary allocation has nothing to do with natural gas”. Strange because Mr. Patterson appears to…
Oil, Government Take & Spending: Navigating Guyana’s Development Challenges – 24
Introduction Today’s column starts consideration of the final topic (number 10) on my list of the top 10 development challenges, which I anticipate that spending Government’s Take from its coming petroleum sector, scheduled to be on-stream in early 2020, will have to confront in the coming years. That topic is Integrating the Production Sharing Agreement…
Mapping the Gas Bubble: Patterson’s Folly
Every Man, Woman and Child Must Become Oil-Minded (Part 65) Introduction Today’s column carries out a commitment I made in a letter earlier this week responding to a statement by Mr. David Patterson, Minister of Public Infrastructure appearing in the last Sunday Stabroek. Patterson reports that a Dutch company will be undertaking an ocean floor…
Mr. G.K. Lall is telling us to be happily enslaved by this contract
What’s the difference between a traitor and an educated writer, with the writer using his pen to weaken and impoverish his people, under the guise of security and national interest, to justify an oil contract so stupid and filled with incomprehensible nonsense and incomparable exploiting terms? We have quislings among us, whose touchstone is not…
Mangal says advised against Crab Island oil facility over lack of transparency
Dr Jan Mangal, former petroleum advisor to President David Granger, has said he advised government against investing in the development of the now shelved onshore oil and gas supply facility at Crab Island, in Region Six, as the proposal did not go through the due diligence needed for the investment, which would have required billions…
The oil company does benefit by inflating costs, Guyana must be vigilant
I write in relation to a letter included in the Stabroek News on 28-Nov-2018 with the title `Why would Exxon inflate these costs when it wouldn’t be the one benefitting?’ authored by a Mr Clement Smith. The letter in question makes a number of inaccurate points and I attempt to address these below. In summary,…
Oil, Government Take & Spending: Navigating Guyana’s Development Challenges – 22
Introduction Last week’s column dealt with a few of the more theoretical aspects of the role that “public expectations” play in general economic growth theory and the modelling of natural resources policy management. Today’s column focuses on the specifics of managing these expectations as a development challenge facing Guyana, as it seeks to spend its…
Oil, Government Take & Spending: Navigating Guyana’s Development Challenges – 21
Introduction A number of readers have indicated to me I should have placed much more emphasis on the great extent to which the Permanent Income Hypothesis (PIH) fiscal rule for natural resources revenue management,no longer finds favour, even among its most ardent initial supporters. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a good example of this….