Following allegations of procurement irregularities, the state-owned Guyana Oil Company recently advertised and received 18 Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from prospective suppliers of petroleum products.
“The response received was a lot… we got 18 EOIs,” Chairman of Guyoil’s Board of Directors Paul Cheong told Sunday Stabroek on Thursday when contacted.
All of the EOIs will be evaluated according to the criteria set out, which includes that the seller must supply documentary proof that they have a history of supplying and the financial wherewithal to meet the terms set out by the company.
It was made clear to prospective suppliers that this was only the first part in the quest for a supplier as “this is a Request for Expression of Interest only; thus, selected companies will be invited to participate in the Request for Proposal (RFP) thereafter.”
Guyoil had last month put out a notice for the submissions of EOIs to supply it with petroleum products and the deadline for submissions was last Wednesday, June 2, 2021.
“The Guyana Oil Company… (issues) an Expression of Interest for the FOB and CIF supply of gasoline, kerosene, low Sulphur diesel, Jet A1 and fuel oil. CIF Guyana is to be delivered to two independent ports in Georgetown and Berbice. FOB supply of the said products is to be uplifted from the supplier’s respective storage facilities which must be identified,” the company’s call for EOIs stated.
It added that prices for the products will be based on Platts US Gulf Coast mean, three days average around Bill of Lading date and the seller shall provide fixed differentials for each product grade for the term of the contract.
Guyoil stated that open credit is a requirement and when the monies are paid it will be via wire transfer.
On the quality and quantity of the products, it will be witnessed by a mutually agreed independent inspector and the company and supplier will split the cost of payment.
In April, allegations were made by proprietor of Aaron Royality Inc (ARI), Jayson Aaron that his company had been left with a large quantity of fuel on hand after a commitment to purchase was made by Guyoil officials. He also claimed that he had evidence of the commitments by officials of the company who also tried to solicit kickbacks.
Aaron also released an audio recording and images of WhatsApp conversations he claimed to have had with officials.
Following the allegations, Minister with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh had invited the Auditor General to investigate and sounded a warning that corruption will not be tolerated. It is unclear why Guyoil had been dealing directly with suppliers like Aaron rather than going immediately to tendering or borrowing fuel from an established supplier.
Auditor Deodat Sharma last week told this newspaper that the investigations have been completed and a draft report is being prepared.
He explained that his mandate pertained to investigating “whether a particular supplier had a contract or did not have a contract to supply fuel for Guyoil and whether the proper procedures were followed.”
Asked if the investigation looked at allegations made by ARI that if kickbacks were given to officials of the state company then it would get a contract, Sharma said it did and added that his office would request police investigations if it believed it was warranted.
He explained that his mandate pertained to investigating “whether a particular supplier had a contract or did not have a contract to supply fuel for Guyoil and whether the proper procedures were followed.”
Late last month, Aaron was arrested and questioned for allegedly falsifying the series of WhatsApp messages he released. He has since been released on $100,000 bail and that matter is pending.
Additionally, the vessel which was said to be carrying ARI’s fuel for Guyoil is reportedly in the custody of the GDF Coast Guard. The vessel reportedly loaded the fuel in Venezuela.
At Guyoil, the General Manager Trevor Bassoo resigned maintaining he played no role in alleged negotiations but felt that he could no longer function in the work environment. The acceptance of his resignation and announcement that the company’s Chief Finance Officer Shawn Persaud and board member, Akanni Blair were removed from their positions, as the duo were found to have had “inappropriate” contact with the importer in question, were made by President Irfaan Ali, during a press conference.
Guyoil last week also closed applications for a General Manager and Company Secretary.
