The growing opportunities in Guyana’s oil and gas sector took the spotlight on Tuesday as the inaugural ‘Caribbean Virtual Oil and Gas Summit’ (CARIVS) got underway.
The three-day virtual event which also features an exhibition – CARIVS 2020 – was organised by Valiant Business Media (UK/Guyana).
During the opening segment of the Summit which has over 800 registered attendees, Chief Executive
Officer of Valiant Business Media, Shariq AbdulHai stated, “Over the last few years, the oil and gas sector of the Caribbean region has seen tremendous activity with all the recent discoveries and now billions of barrels of recoverable oil. We are firm that this region is set to become the energy hub of the world.” In the last five years, the discovered recoverable oil equivalent resources in Guyana have soared to over eight billion barrels.
AbdulHai urged attendees to make full use of the networking opportunities that have been made available. “Over the next three days, the conference sessions are set up alongside the virtual expo which means you can come to the exhibition booths, connect with the exhibitors, download all the information, check out products and services which are on offer, but again more importantly, make those connections and set up business development meetings,” he told attendees.
Guyana’s Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, in his address noted that the event “is testimony to the fact, that even as we face challenging times globally, regionally and nationally in ways that are common to us all, yet in many other ways that are unique to each nation’s circumstances, humankind has once again proven its ability to persevere and thrive through innovation.”
He commended the organizer for their initiative, later adding that “…Now more than ever, we must think about ways of overcoming individual challenges in this sector and by extension explore ways of collaboration and possible cooperation with potential opportunities for investment and technical assistance.” Pointing to Guyana, he boasted of the opportunities in the petroleum sector.
“Guyana’s emerging petroleum sector has heralded a time of hope and vision of achieving the potential often spoken of in our national song “Oh Beautiful Guyana”. At a time when the nations around the world are grappling with declining economic growth, Guyana is on the rise,” he highlighted. “In May 2015, with the Liza discovery, Guyana was the country that reported the largest hydrocarbon find for the year, now just a few years later, in September 2020, Guyana is a new petroleum producing nation with over eighteen oil discoveries to her credit, and a vibrant petroleum sector in the making.”
Meanwhile, President of ExxonMobil Guyana—operator of the Stabroek Block–, Alistair Routledge stressed that the opportunities in the South American country are as good as the opportunities anywhere in the world. “We are committed to building on the foundation in place, translating the opportunities into safe, sustainable growth,” he said.
He further emphasised, “These discovered resources are a foundation for future development opportunities in Guyana which are a key part of our long-term growth plans and have the potential to be a source of significant value for ExxonMobil, our partners and especially Guyana…We expect to be here for several decades,” Routledge affirmed.
President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Nicholas Deygoo-Boyer was also in high praises of Guyana’s O&G industry, saying, “ With recoverable resources of more than eight billion barrels of oil, Guyana is well positioned to become an economic power house in the Caribbean and as a result, within the last three years, the Georgetown Chamber has widened its scope to become a staunch advocate for the development of the oil and gas sector.”
CARVIS is also expected to feature an address by Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley tomorrow. The Summit is supported by ExxonMobil—the key sponsor—as well as gold sponsors Hess, Sol Petroleum, SBM Offshore and Schlumberger, among others.
