Suriname to offer six offshore blocks in deep-water bid round

Acreage on offer has unrisked resource potential of more than 41 billion barrels of oil

9 November 2022
By Fabio Palmigiani in Rio de Janeiro

Suriname has launched its 2022-2023 bid round featuring six offshore blocks in the under-explored Demerara area to the north-east of major discoveries by TotalEnergies and partner APA Corporation.

The news came as neighbouring Guyana launched plans to host an eagerly awaited auction for 14 offshore blocks next year, using a revamped regulatory framework to boost earnings and competitiveness in the sector.

Suriname state-owned oil company and market regulator Staatsolie said blocks 63, 64, 65, 66, 67 and 68 will be up for grabs, in water depths ranging from 400 to 3500 metres.

Suriname Demerara Bid Round 2022-2023

09 Nov 2022

Staatsolie Hydrocarbon Institute (SHI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname, announced the launch of a competitive bid round of six new blocks in the sparsely explored Demerara acreage of Suriname. The blocks are located east of the current offshore discoveries in water depths from 400 to 3500 meters.

The data room containing data and information on the open acreage opens on 28 November 2022 and will close to new bidders on 28 April 2023, with bids to be submitted by 31 May 2023.

All the necessary information related to the Demerara Bid Round 2022-2023 will be accessible via the Staatsolie website.

Read all the information in the Executive Summary. For more information on the round along with any queries, contact Mike Lakin at Envoi Limited which has been appointed as the DBR advisor and should be the first point of contact.
E: deliver@envoi.co.uk
T: +44 (0)20 8566 1310
I: www.envoi.co.uk – http://envoi.co.uk/projects/active-projects/americas/suriname/

Source: Staatsolie

 

 

Suriname to offer six offshore blocks in Demerara bid round

Nov. 21, 2022,  Offshore staff

PARAMARIBO – State-owned oil company, Staatsolie has announced the launch of a competitive bid round of six new blocks in the Demerara acreage which cover 43,956 sq km of the sparsely explored area, where four wells were previously drilled. Water depths range from 400 m to 3,500 m.

Virtual data rooms will open on Nov. 28, 2022 and close to new bidders on April 28, 2023. Bids must be submitted by May 31, 2023. Staatsolie appointed Envoi Ltd. to be the official adviser for the Demerara bid round, which officially opened on Nov. 8. Winners are expected to be notified by June 30, 2023, followed by signing of production-sharing contracts in third-quarter 2023.

11.21.2022

 

APA Corporation update on Block 58 appraisal and exploration

28 Nov 2022

APA Corporation provided an update on exploration activities in Block 58 offshore Suriname. APA holds 50% working interest, while TotalEnergies is the operator on the block with a 50% working interest.

Drilling operations have concluded at the Awari exploration prospect in the previously untested northwest portion of Block 58. The well was deemed non-commercial.

At the Sapakara South-2 (SPS-2) appraisal well, the joint venture will commence flow-test operations following drilling to the targeted Maastrichtian-Campanian formation. Results are expected to be available next month. SPS-2 is located approx. 4.6 kms south of Sapakara South-1.

Source APACorporation

 

Shell to assess results of Suriname well ahead of potential new campaign

Zanderij-1 probe in Block 42 encountered an oil pay but sources were downbeat about the results

8 November 2022
Fabio Palmigiani in Rio de Janeiro

UK supermajor Shell is evaluating results of the Zanderij-1 wildcat drilled in Block 42 offshore Suriname, as it considers further exploration activities in the area.

The well was drilled with the Maersk Drilling drillship Maersk Voyager and was trying to detect the presence of hydrocarbons to the north of Block 58, where France’s TotalEnergies made a string of discoveries.

Block 42 partner Hess said in a recent conference call that Zanderij-1 demonstrated a working petroleum system and encountered an oil pay, but failed to provide additional details on the probe.

Hess reports $400 million increase in quarterly income and news in Guyana and Suriname

Company reports net income of $515 million for the quarter

27 October 2022
Mark Passwaters in Houston

Hess Corporation reported on Wednesday improved net income of $515 million for the third quarter of 2022 on the back of an increase in year-on-year production, and gave information on new discoveries offshore Guyana and Suriname.

The quarterly net income was an improvement of $400 million over the same quarter in 2021.

The company, along with ExxonMobil, also announced two new discoveries offshore Guyana as the exploration and production programme continues to expand.

Guyana, company chief executive John Hess said during the company’s earnings call Wednesday, “is the key to our strategy”.

 

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

IMF Executive Board Concludes 2022 Article IV Consultation with St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Country Report No. 2022/346 : St. Vincent and the Grenadines: 2022

Article IV Consultation- Press Release;

Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Summary: St. Vincent and the Grenadines is recovering from the pandemic and 2021 volcanic eruptions.

• Despite the authorities’ strong efforts to contain deficits, critical fiscal responses to these shocks pushed up public debt, which—while assessed as sustainable—remains at high risk of distress should future shocks materialize.
• The economy is projected to grow by 5 percent in 2022, supported by large-scale investment projects and recoveries in tourism and agriculture.
• Surging commodity prices, fueled by Russia’s war in Ukraine, are expected to raise inflation sharply to 5.8 percent in 2022, adding to fiscal and external pressures and weighing on the recovery.
• So far, the financial system has weathered the shocks relatively well.
• The outlook is subject to significant downside risks primarily from an abrupt slowdown in trading partners’ growth, potential delays in investment projects including due to supply chain disruptions, and the ever-present threat of frequent natural disasters.

Court orders Local Content Certificate for Ramps Logistics

Nov 12, 2022

Director of the Local Content Secretariat, Dr. Martin Pertab has until noon on November 14, 2022, to issue a Local Content Certificate to Ramps Logistics or else he will be held in contempt of court.

Ramps Logistics, originally from Trinidad and Tobago, registered under Guyana’s Companies Act to offer supply chain management services in Guyana but was denied a Local Content Certificate as required under the Local Content Act of 2021, for purportedly not being a ‘Guyanese company.’

Contentions surfaced over the manner in which foreign companies are using Guyanese nationals to fulfil their local content requirement for the company to be 51 percent locally owned.   Ramps provided detailed information to the Local Content Secretariat regarding Deepak Lall, a Trinidadian with Guyanese parentage who purchased 51 percent of Ramps Guyana for US$1M, making it 51 percent Guyanese owned.

In June 2022, the company’s application for a certificate was denied. Ramps Logistics challenged the decision and took the Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat and the Secretariat to court.

Ramps Logistics was represented by Senior Counsel, Edward Luckhoo and Attorney-at-Law C.V Satram. The State was represented by Solicitor General, Nigel Hawke and others.

During oral arguments, Hawke admitted to the court that a company does not need a certificate in order to operate within the oil and gas sector. This was revealed by the Director in his affidavits of defence. The Chief Justice questioned that if a company does not need the certificate to operate in the energy sector, “Why have the Act?”

Justice George-Wiltshire then pointed out that the Director admitted in his affidavit, that Ramps met the 51 percent Guyanese ownership after its resubmission.

The Chief Justice noted that while the Respondents in their affidavits highlighted that the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is before the court facing criminal charges – the Act does not make mention of criminal charges being taken into consideration when a applying for a certificate – and that the criminal charges were filed months after Ramps approached the High Court. Hawke contended that the criminal charges being mentioned goes to conduct.

The Chief Justice argued that while the Respondents contended that Ramps did not meet the requirements under ‘Form C’; she highlighted that ‘Form C’ was not exhibited to the court and was not a part of the law that governs local content.

To this end, the General Solicitor accepted that all that was requested by the Secretariat under its ‘Form C’ is not required by law under the Local Content Act.

Following the CJ’s line of questioning to Hawke, Luckhoo argued out that the company only made one application to the Secretariat.

The Chief Justice later ruled that there was no evidence submitted by the Respondents to show that Ramps did not meet the requirements under the Local Content Act to be classified as a Guyanese company. The CJ considered and concluded that Ramps satisfied the requirements of the Local Content Act.

The Chief Justice advised that a list of requirements in ‘Form C’ that the Director referred to in his Affidavit of Defence, have no statutory basis. “He also refers to charges by the Guyana Revenue Authority which are irrelevant to determination of an application under the Local Content Act. The Local Content Act clearly needs regulations so as to prevent arbitrary decision making.”

The Chief Justice then granted a declaration that Ramps satisfied the statutory requirements and preconditions necessary for the grant of the Certificate of Registration, a declaration that Ramps Logistics as a Guyanese company is entitled to be issued a Certificate of Registration and to be entered into the local content register; and a declaration that the decision by Minister Bharrat and/or Dr. Pertab and/or the Secretariat to refuse to grant a certificate or registration to Ramps is unlawful, illegal, null, void and of no legal effect.

The CJ granted two other declarations – that the decision of the State officials or State agency misconstrued or misapplied Section 2A1 and 2A2 of the Act and that they breached Section 6 of the Act by refusing to grant the certificate to Ramps Logistics Chief Executive Officer of Ramps Logistics Guyana, Shaun Rampersad

The Chief Justice granted a certiorari to quash the decision of Minister Bharrat and/or Dr. Pertab and/or the Secretariat to refuse to issue a certificate to Ramps and an order of mandamus directing the Director to register and issue a Certificate of Registration to Ramps Logistics on or before noon on November 14, 2022. The CJ noted that if the Director fails to do so he will be held in contempt and imprisoned and/or fined.

As it relates to the damages incurred by the company after the certificate was denied in June, that matter will be heard separately on February 20, 2023.

The CEO of Ramps Logistics was charged on October 21, 2022 for allegedly making false declaration to the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).

Shaun Rampersad, of Windsor Estate, East Bank Demerara, had denied the charges which alleged that the company between 2021 and 2022, at Georgetown, made 10 false declarations on applications presented to a Customs Officer for tax exemptions on several items. It was also stated that the logistics company falsely declared that it was the seller of several items including heavy-duty equipment, chemical compounds, and dehydrated substances.

 

State exploring options in RAMPS Logistics matter

November 14, 2022

The Government is exploring all available options, including an appeal of the Chief Justice’s ruling in the RAMPS Logistics Guyana Incorporated judicial review local content certification matter.

The Ministry of Natural Resources said the government respects the rule of law and will comply with the ruling. However, there are strong concerns by the ministry regarding the eligibility of this particular application for local content certification.

Government has also taken note of the recent settlement by the company and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) on the matter of tax evasion and the ongoing litigations in 10 false tax declarations to the GRA by the company.

The GRA, on October 5, instituted the 10 charges against RAMPS Logistics Guyana Inc. following the conclusion of investigations carried out by the Law Enforcement and Investigations Division of the agency.

The investigations revealed that during the period 2021 to 2022, the company made several untrue declarations to the GRA.

The company, incorporated in 2013 in Guyana and parented by RAMPS Logistics Limited in Trinidad and Tobago, had been denied a local content certificate by the Local Content Secretariat, which falls under the purview of the Natural Resources ministry.

The Local Content Secretariat had determined that the information submitted by the company was insufficient for a proper compliance evaluation to be conducted by the secretariat, in accordance with the requirements of the Local Content Act.

Although failing to meet the requirements for the local content certificate, the logistics company moved to the High Court seeking orders to force the Local Content Secretariat, to issue the document.

A Fixed Date Application (FDA) seeking several declarations and orders was filed in the court, including that “as a Guyanese Company” it is “entitled” to be issued with a Certificate of Registration and to be entered into the Local Content Register.

It was reported earlier in 2022 that 51 per cent of the local company was sold to a Trinidadian businessman, of Guyanese parentage.

The sale of majority shares of the local logistics company came after Guyana’s Parliament enacted its updated local content rules, which aim to protect the interest of Guyanese and local companies in the growing oil industry.

The National Assembly passed the Local Content Bill (Bill no. 21 of 2021) with a few minor amendments in December 2021. Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat tabled the Bill on December 15, 2021. He told the sitting that the Bill is a “living document” that will transform growth of Guyana’s human resource capacity.

“We want to ensure that with this Bill, Guyanese reap the benefits from the oil and gas sector. This bill will help us to truly assess our capacity, as well as what is needed to build capacity in Guyana. As a government, we are committed to working with every stakeholder, once there is seriousness in developing the oil and gas sector.”

Minister Bharrat reminded that the legislation will compel oil companies, their contractors and sub-contractors to do business with Guyanese. The Bill outlines penalties for companies which fail to meet the minimum targets of the legislation, as well as those that are in breach. These fines range from as low as $5 million to as high as $50 million.

The Local Content Secretariat will continue to act in a professional manner and defend the people of Guyana consistent with the Local Content Act.

Relieved Ramps receives certificate

17 november

CEO of Ramps Logistics, Shaun Rampersad and his team at Ramps Guyana are enjoying a sense of relief and pride since the company received its local content certificate, as ordered by Guyana acting chief justice Roxanne George-Wiltshire.

The ruling signalled an end to a six-month struggle with the Guyana government which, in June, denied the company a local content certificate under new legislation.

“Our team in Guyana especially has been under tremendous pressure and stress. You can imagine the concern about job security going into Christmas. Not sure what’s going to happen, you know, if they would lose their jobs and that sort of stuff. So the stress level in the organisation was off the charts for a few months.

“The average age in Ramps Guyana is probably about 23 or 24 years old, right? A lot of young university graduates are in the organisation. And I feel like they feel a sense of pride that in their country, there’s a free and fair, independent judiciary.”

Justice George-Wiltshire determined that Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat and director of the Local Content Secretariat, Dr Martin Pertab erred in their denial of a the local content certificate.

While the secretariat took issue with what it claimed was inconsistencies in financial statements submitted that would prove that 51 per cent of the company was owned by Deepak Lall – a “bonafide Guyanese,” George-Wiltshire determined that the state fell short in proving its case.

Pertab’s submission that Ramps was facing charges by the Guyana Revenue Authority for breach of the custom’s law was debunked by George-Wiltshire who said the charges were laid days after Ramps’ application for judicial review and was, therefore, irrelevant. Pertab’s argument was that there were inconsistencies between the application by Ramps and Form C – a list of requirements by the Secretariat to carry out its due diligence of the companies applying to be part of the register absent as an exhibit.

The chief justice said in her preliminary ruling, “The law provides a relatively simple regime for registration once the person satisfies the criteria in this case, of being a Guyanese company,”g. “There is no evidence submitted by the respondent to counter the information provided by the applicant which I have considered and concluded satisfies the requirements of the Local Content Act.”

tRamps said, “We are grateful for all who have stood by us during the past few months, especially our team members who have remained strong throughout this process. We remain committed to working with the Local Content Secretariat to develop local content in Guyana and ensure more opportunities within the Oil and Gas sector remain among its people, businesses, and communities.”

Rampersad said that Guyana, growing into a powerhouse in the region, will help Caricom to have a bigger voice in the world.

He said to integrate the Caricom region, there would be a need for leaders who are serious of connecting the countries. He said leaders like the Barbados Prime Minister and Guyana President leading the charge make him hopeful that things would improve.

“There are a couple leaders right now that are serious and they want to get this done. And when Guyana becomes wealthier it means that Caricom will have a bigger voice. We are only as powerful as the combined voices of the territories within the region.”

(Persecution of a Caricom company tarnishes the image of Guyana. With oil producing neighbours, Guyana is aware that its citizens who took jobs in Texaco Trinidad which locals could do, were accepted in Trinidad which forgave Guyana debt. Guyanese staff also worked at UWI ST Augustine which trains Guyanese students with aid from ECO.)

 

 

Guyana President in Trinidad

Aug 20 2022

President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali in T&T for a three-day state visit, discussed agriculture production to cut Caricom’s food import bill and urged Guyanese living in T&T to return home for economic opportunities. At a meeting with the Guyanese Diaspora he said Guyana’s economy was the “fastest growing” in Latin America and the Caribbean with natural resources worth hundreds of billions of US dollars. Ali told the Diaspora that there are now more opportunities than when they left their homeland.

“The incentive when you left was that you were going to something better. I say to you now, the incentive is that we can offer you better than when you left and to give you an opportunity now to return home. I want you to come back home.”

Areas that the Diaspora can work and invest in include agriculture, tourism, oil and gas, and construction.   He spoke about the importance of training and educating Guyana’s workforce for the new industries that they are building.

“Yes, I will talk to you about the 20,000 scholarships, making university education free, school children grants as well as other opportunities.”

He disclosed plans to reduce the cost of energy, which will make investments in different industries more attractive for Guyanese who want to return and for foreign investors.

“You know what this will do for manufacturing and industrial development?”

Guyana’s Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha, said the Government welcomes “thousands” of Guyanese who live in T&T back home to build the country.

 

Green Energy Producers for Europe

JoEllen Laryea Nov 11, 2022

European Union Ambassador Peter Cavendish believes that Africa and the West Indies can be the green hydrogen producers of the future. Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA), Wamkele Mene, says the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia could potentially control the market for lithium-ion batteries.

These revelations were made at the inaugural Caribbean Investment Forum organized by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) being held from November 8 – 11, 2022 in Trinidad and Tobago.

Ambassador Cavendish believes sustainable energy is an area in which both the West Indies and Africa have significant competitive advantage and could significantly impact the world. A fundamental shift has occurred in Europe that historically believed it was energy secure and energy independent.

We realise now we are energy dependent and recently the Middle East, the Norwegians, the Americans and the Nigerians supplied our energy needs in time of crisis. This heralded a gigantic change in European psychology and the Caribbean and African nations will be able to benefit from that.

The Caribbean has solar, wind, wave, river water, and 19 volcanoes from which it can generate energy. “The Caribbean and Africa together have the potential to be the major green hydrogen supplier for Europe in the future. You have a gigantic energy advantage that will last through the lifetimes of you, your children and your grandchildren.”

Ambassador Mene highlighted a common obstacle blocking growth and development in both the Caribbean and Africa. which needed to retain a greater percentage of the value created from their primary resources. While those resources could be sun and sea, cocoa, spices, oxide or gold, Mene highlighted lithium cobalt oxide.

While the DRC and Zambia were leading producers of this key input into the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles, they historically have never produced batteries. Similarly, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire are major producers of cocoa but do not make chocolates. Value-added is very important and there must be a shift of investment to the production sector.

Caribbean Export Executive Director Deodat Maharaj revealed out that less than 10 cents of every tourism dollar spent in the Caribbean is retained in the region.

In Africa, change has begun. Governments of DRC and Zambia agreed to stop the export of unprocessed oxide and work together to produce lithium batteries. Governments of Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire agreed to end exporting unprocessed cocoa.

“The DRC and Zambia could potentially control the market for lithium batteries. In 10-15 years, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire would be major producers of coffee and chocolate.”

Mene hopes that Africa and the West Indies will work  to align their export and investment strategies, to increase trade and investment between both regions. He already regarded the Caribbean as “the sixth region” in AFCFTA and discussions have already begun for direct airlift between West Africa and the Caribbean. The African EXIM Bank made US$900 million available to the region to further advance engagement between Africa and the Caribbean.

Trade & Industry Minister, Paula Gopee-Scoon, revealed that Trinidad and Tobago “will open a commercial office in South Africa in the first quarter of 2023 to facilitate trade and investment.”

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4. Impressive Revenue Expectations from Agriculture Production in the Caribbean
5. Caribbean Investment Forum launched with focus on building resilience and boosting investment in the region

 

Caribbean Development Bank

Launch of the International Master in Public Procurement Management Scholarship at the Università di Roma Tor Vergata.

The scholarship is open to all citizens of our borrowing member countries: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, The Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago and Turks and Caicos Islands.

Application Deadline: November 28, 2022 at 11:59PM (AST)

Apply Now

www.caribank.org

Caribbean Development Bank
PO Box 408, Wildey, St. Michael BB11000 Barbados
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