The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) is considering joining the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN), a global independent not-for-profit support organization, in hopes of tapping into its repository of expertise in supporting oil and gas negotiations.
“There are a number of benefits of us joining, given their… expertise in oil and gas negotiations,” GGMC head Newell Dennison told Stabroek News last evening, following the organisation’s first meeting here, which was held at Herdmanston Lodge, Georgetown.
He added that the US$175 annual fee is not exorbitant for the amount of resources that would be available to the GGMC as a member.
Facilitated by recent Guyanese member company Hughes, Fields and Stoby, the meeting heard from partner in the firm Nigel Hughes about the benefits of joining the AIPI, including education, training and networking opportunities.
“It is an independent, and I want to stress independent, not-for-profit professional membership organisation that supports international energy negotiators around the world and enhances their effectiveness and professionalism in the international energy community,” Hughes said.
He pointed out that one of the partners of his law firm attended two workshops held by the organisation since it joined this year.
Hughes added that the partner engaged AIPN Executive Director John Bridges about doing something in the region so that potential members would not have to travel all the way to its headquarters, located in Houston, to take advantage of networking opportunities.
Within two weeks, one of the directors of the organisation, Willem Bloem, visited Guyana and started discussions about establishing Guyanese memberships in AIPN, which has some 3,200 global members. It was suggested that the local membership could collaborate with Suriname and Trinidad so that training sessions could be held regionally, instead of requiring travel to Houston.
Bloem’s intervention, Hughes posited, was critical to the networking event held last evening and it was why his law firm “jumped at the opportunity” and was honoured to sponsor the event to see Guyana introduced to the organisation and vice versa.
According to the AIPN website, the “association hosts several quality events each year that provide networking opportunities and provide valuable educational programs and tools. In sum, the AIPN aims to help the international energy negotiator be better prepared to meet the challenges of today’s competitive global energy market. AIPN dues and event fees are priced lower than other professional associations to encourage widespread member involvement.”
It adds, “One reason AIPN is able to do this is because of the exceptional financial support from numerous companies who make up its Corporate Sponsors. To help support its staff, AIPN relies on a board of committed volunteers. Members of the AIPN Board of Directors are committed to participate actively in AIPN business and activities during their terms of office.”
Bloem told reporters that the organisation wanted to make clear that it does not act in any advisory capacity so one would never see AIPN telling countries how or what to negotiate for as it believes that is a sovereign issue and there it stays clear of Production Sharing Agree-ments. He said that the organisation provides models, and there are about 19 such model contracts in its repository. These range from joint operating agreements, confidentiality agreements, lifting agreements, and gas sale agreements, among others.
