Pointing to what he said was a void in knowledge, a Houston, US-based Guyanese lawyer last week concluded a second oil and gas training conference and expressed disappointment at government’s disinterest in the forum.
After what he said was a successful inaugural Oil and Gas and Energy Busi-ness Training Conference last year, a second two-day forum concluded on Friday.
Organiser Edwin Callender, of the Callender Law Firm located in Houston, Texas says the forum is aimed at building local capacity in the sector and training Guyanese professionals. The law firm has been in operation since 2011.
The conference began on Thursday and saw participants from mostly the local and regional private sector, as well as representatives from the Guyana Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GY-EITI).
Speaking to Stabroek News on Friday, Callender said that the first conference was successful and the objective is to make it an annual event until it is no longer needed.
“The objective is mainly capacity building in energy and oil and gas business matters. As you know, this [industry] is new to Guyana, it’s brand new and we need to equip Guyanese with actionable knowledge to know what’s coming, what’s here, what the opportunities are and how to take advantage of it that would help them move along and make use of the opportunities,” Callender explained.
He noted that his team has noticed a void that is not being filled and last year, during the first conference, they were gratified by the responses they received from the delegates and participants.
“Everyone who came last year stayed both days and at the end they hung around just to talk to us. In fact, they asked us to come back in six months but we couldn’t do it because we all have our businesses and our jobs. I tried to make it happen but it didn’t,” Callender highlighted, while noting that the responses from the participants last year, coupled with the identifiable voids and his commitment to making a change in Guyana are the main influences for the continuation of the training conference.
In addition to those factors, Callender noted that he is Guyanese and his reasoning behind having the conference is his care for the country and ambition to make a contribution.
“It is to make a contribution because I know the capabilities are not present in Guyana. I can lend my expertise and that is what I am trying to do,” he said.
Callender’s firm is the main sponsor of the event but is also being assisted by Ramdihal and Haynes Inc., the University of Guyana and MCCGUSA Ltd. (formerly Management Consulting and Controls Group).
Encouraging
Despite the encouraging participation from the private sector, Callender noted that it has not been the same from the Government, as they have not received any support.
“The fact of the matter is this is capacity building for Guyanese and the importance of this is to help Guyanese people understand the industry and give them the insights that can help them to take advantage of the opportunities. Also, in the absence of knowledge there is ignorance and fiction and that is what we see mostly in the media here. There are lots of pundits that have sprung up overnight who are energy experts and most of what I see, it doesn’t make any sense to us and it doesn’t foster a good business environment for people trying to come to Guyana to do business,” he explained.
He also noted that other members of the Guyanese diaspora that are willing to help and contribute to making the sector better are being “ignored by the powers that be” as if they do not value the important resource of intellectual capital.
“We left for a reason right, but that same diaspora is what has been keeping the economy going through remittances over all of these years and so it is mind boggling,” he said, while noting that he would like to see more participation directly from the Government in the future and for those that are invited, to show up.
Callender said that both the Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman and Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, were invited to the conference but neither showed up.
Despite this setback, he said that the diaspora is very excited to see the opportunities that Guyana has and those who have expertise and experience in the incumbent industry are willing and are trying to help. However, the lack of responsiveness from the Government has been perplexing and presents itself as an obstacle since the Government is the main party that they have to engage and which has a responsibility for setting policies and other frameworks.
“We are not going to be deterred. This is our country as well and we are going to make a difference here. It’s a change that needs to happen in our culture,” he said.
He, however, emphasised that the participation from the other stakeholders has been encouraging.
On the first day of the conference, presentations were made on oil and gas development in Guyana: opportunities for economic and societal development; oil and gas business fundamentals: exploration, appraisal, development, production, decommissioning; project economics and risks, and environmental considerations and safety.
Presentations were also made on host country granting instruments: comparative descriptions of major types used worldwide and the Guyanese oil and gas regulatory framework for granting exploration and production rights.
The first day also covered complying with the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Guyana’s anti-corruption laws while robustly pursuing business opportunities; risk allocation: among joint venture participations and between operations and service companies; local content and oil refining fundamentals and its economics and trends.
The second and final day of the conference saw presentations on natural gas fundamentals; natural gas liquids, liquefied natural gas and markets; sustainable economic and development and resource dependence; natural gas to electricity and the powering of industrialisation and economic development in Guyana; Farmout Agreements, joint operating agreements and service contacts; environmental, health and safety and human rights in petroleum exploration, development and production; and getting to 2020 and beyond, issues confronting Guyana as it develops a modern economy.
In addition to Callender, presentations were also made by International Energy Attorney based in Texas, Harry Sullivan and Campanile Charities Professor of Energy Law and Director of the Mineral Law Institute of Louisiana State University, Keith Hall.
