est. 2007

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Drill Baby!

There has been a lot of chatter in the news lately about the large oil deposits found by Guyana.  Barbadians and Caricom neighbours  wish the South American republic well and must be concern about recent reports the deal with Exxon is a bad one. It is shocking that Exxon would seek such an exploitative deal…

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There has been a lot of chatter in the news lately about the large oil deposits found by Guyana.  Barbadians and Caricom neighbours  wish the South American republic well and must be concern about recent reports the deal with Exxon is a bad one.

It is shocking that Exxon would seek such an exploitative deal in one of the Western Hemisphere’s poorest countries,” Jonathan Gant, senior campaigner at Global Witness said. Gant also explained the nation’s urgent development needs, such as building new hospitals and schools and protecting itself from rising sea levels, that put 90% of the population at risk.

Global Witness accuses Exxon of “Exploitative” contract

On queue we read this week the Ministry of Energy and Water Resources issued offshore exploration licences for the Carlisle Bay and Bimshire blocks to BHP Petroleum.

Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Wilfred Abrahams, stated: “While the Government of Barbados is aggressively pursuing renewable and alternative energy initiatives, it also recognizes the importance of diversifying the island’s energy portfolio to include offshore oil and gas development.

Barbados Issues Effective Offshore Exploration Licences To BHP Petroleum

The simple question from a lowly blogmaster to the Prime Minister and Minister of Energy – whither the renewable sector?

35 responses to “Drill Baby!”

  1. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    EXPORT ?

    https://www.caribbeannationalweekly.com/caribbean-breaking-news-featured/barbados-enters-into-oil-contract-with-jamaican-oil-refinery-petrojam/

  2. John Avatar
    John

    My geologist friend tells me Guyana’s reserves are not as high as people think.

    Time will tell.

  3. Miller Avatar
    Miller

    @ John February 6, 2020 9:36 PM
    “My geologist friend tells me Guyana’s reserves are not as high as people think.”
    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    Where are the ‘Futures’ markets for this heavy crude anyway?

    Who will be buying this new oil? Caricom states or China?

    Even the well-established producers in the ME are weaning their economies off crude oil production.

    Should the world go into an extended period of economic stagnation or even steady-state-growth the demand for crude would drop significantly.

    Unless there are large gas deposits among those offshore fields we cannot bank on any economic miracles visiting Guyana in the future.

    Fossil fuel-based energy sources have a ‘bleak’ future given what is happening in a world constantly concerned about the deleterious effects of global warming and the need to reduce carbon footprints on the already ‘stressed’ environment.

    The ICE-powered vehicles for private use will soon go the way of donkey carts.

  4. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    @john. EXXON lastest find in Guyana ( 16th find overall) put total proven reserve of gas and oil at 8 billion barrel.That’s the fourth largest reserve in the americas, and landing Guyana a spot in the top 20 worldwide. Even if we discount/ignore/writeoff 50% of the total for whatever reason, 4 billion barrel is still HUGE. That’s more reserve than Colombia or Indonesia. Even one billion barrel is still MASSIVE. Compare that to Trinidad reserve of about 300-500 million barrel.

  5. John Avatar
    John

    fortyacresandamule
    February 7, 2020 12:25 AM

    @john. EXXON lastest find in Guyana ( 16th find overall) put total proven reserve of gas and oil at 8 billion barrel.That’s the fourth largest reserve in the americas, and landing Guyana a spot in the top 20 worldwide. Even if we discount/ignore/writeoff 50% of the total for whatever reason, 4 billion barrel is still HUGE. That’s more reserve than Colombia or Indonesia. Even one billion barrel is still MASSIVE. Compare that to Trinidad reserve of about 300-500 million barrel.

    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    How does it compare with it’s other neighbor, Venezuela?

  6. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    @Miller. Guyana’s crude is unlike venezuela Orinoco heavy crude. It is a medium light crude similar to some middle east grades. Cost of production is less than US$$50. The wells also contain vast gas deposit. They should develop both resources similar to Trinidad or Norway. Hydrocarbon energy will eventually wane in the future, however, realistically, I don’t see that dropping off significantly for another generation.

    My immediate concern for Guyana is the effect of this sudden financial bonanza will have on the economy and the people if it is not managed properly. If Guyana was poor yet notoriously corrupt, especially, under the last PPP government, imagine what will happen under this new paradigm?

  7. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    @John. Venezuela has the world largest reserve. Consist of unconventional oil, heavy and sour grade conventional oil. For a better comparion, barrels per capita per day, is a better metric.

    Guyana is projected to produce 750000 barrels per day by 2025. With a population of still less than a million people by then, that comes out to almost barrel of oil for each resident per day. No other country boast such ratio. Venezuela will have to pump 30 million barrels per day to match such ratio. An impossible task.

  8. John Avatar
    John

    Is Guyana’s oil offshore?

  9. Donks, Gripe and Josh Avatar
    Donks, Gripe and Josh

    Agenda driven posters working overtime to place a damper on Guyana’s huge game changing oil discoveries must be ignored.

    With its oil bounty the second poorest country in the Hemisphere after Haiti can realistically dream of a bright future on guard for pitfalls which will inevitably be in the way.

    Barbados has been tardy on oil exploration for no good reason.

    With a stagnant economy and a tourism industry which benefits a select few mainly former plantation owners, traditional business elites, foreigners and their children Barbados needs options fast.

    The prolonged upsurge in crime and violence cannot be delinked from the island’s poor economic outlook.

    The central Bank governor who like his predecessor trots out the same dismal report year after year revealed oil imports have risen.

    In a country aiming for full renewable energy by 2030 rising oil imports makes a mockery of that goal.

    There is no short or medium term replacement for hydro carbons.

    Keep an eye on where America deploys or threatens to deploy its armed forces in its national interest all are oil producing states. Pick sense from nonsense.

    GOB must tell naysayers to get out of the way. With fingers and toes crossed start drilling offshore as soon as feasible.

    Drilling should have started long ago.

    Guyana’s search for black gold began after the lotta long talk in Barbados. That nation has come up big with vast reserves to make OPEC blush.

    The people of Guyana will be huge beneficiaries from the proactivity of their government.

    With on shore deposits of oil and gas there is potential for hydro carbon deposits in Barbados’ maritime space.

    May the force be with the drillers and major quantities of recoverable oil is found. The shot in the arm for the local economy indeed Caribbean cannot be underestimated.

    There is a core in Barbados against any development consigning the poor mostly blacks to live and die in poverty.

    That same core rail against construction of new hotels new building meets their disapproval. How are jobs to be created and economy grow is the least of their concerns.

    You don’t have to be Einstein to know the same group opposes drilling for oil.

    The oppositionists live comfortably bank accounts at home and abroad healthy their children attend schools overseas.

    In the meantime poor people bellies hungry.

    A hungry man is an angry man the link between out of hand violence and economic situation is not as tenuous as some want us to believe.

    Time to drill for the damn oil.

  10. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    “Guyana’s search for black gold began after the lotta long talk in Barbados. That nation has come up big with vast reserves to make OPEC blush.“

    This is not the first time that Guyana has had the opportunity for drilling etc. It goes way back to Burnham’s time. Burnham wanted bigger profits and the exercise fell through. Barbados and Guyana have never been in any oil race. Neither did Guyana embarked on oil exploration because of missteps by Barbados.
    The above statement as quoted above is therefore patently false

  11. Ping Pong Avatar
    Ping Pong

    @John
    while not particularly interested in Guyana, ask your geologists friend what is the likelihood of economically viable quantities of oil and gas being found offshore of Barbados?

  12. John Avatar
    John

    Ping Pong
    February 7, 2020 8:35 AM

    @John
    while not particularly interested in Guyana, ask your geologists friend what is the likelihood of economically viable quantities of oil and gas being found offshore of Barbados?

    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    My father, a civil engineer, who had worked in the Venezuelan oilfields for 16 years, 1937-53 always used to say there was plenty oil here.

    Whether it is economic or not is a different story.

    I suspect not, atleast for the moment so did not engage my geologist friend on this topic.

    Was more interested to find out if the Guyana discoveries are what they are made out to be.

    If Guyana’s oil is offshore and the figure given of “less than $50.00” per barrel is the cost of extraction depending on how much less will determine how much benefit will accrue to Guyana.

  13. John Avatar
    John

    …. however, my geologist friend was not terribly impressed, who am I to differ?

  14. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    @ David
    We have the cart before the horse. The very first step in any long term renewable energy plan is a broad environmental policy. One of the first goals within that policy has to be the basic standard of garbage collection and disposal. We have not yet mastered this first step.
    As far as oil exploration is concerned, this is not the first time we have thought of looking at such possibilities.
    What you refuse to admit and accept is that all of this is just warmed over soup.Everyday we are being fed the same thing and the latest hobby is rewriting almost identical pieces of legislation. We are governed by cosmetology. Repairing a road is now front page photo op.
    So we are going drilling for oil again. Maybe this time we may get lucky. Quite frankly we should be drilling for water!

  15. David Avatar
    David

    William it does not matter if it is warm over soup. We are here and the urgency of the situation demands that we do many things at the same time.

    >

  16. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    @ Where are we exactly? When did you start enjoying warm over soup?
    Haven’t you often said that if we keep on trying the same thing we would get the same results?

  17. David Avatar
    David

    We have to continue to search for solutions. We have to find answers to waste management. We have to look for energy solutions. We have search for food security etc etc etc. If it means having to revisit and dusting off old discussions so be it.

  18. Donks, Gripe and Josh Avatar
    Donks, Gripe and Josh

    Skinner W take it as read you are Bajan abroad.

    When next you visit the rock walk Murphy’s Pasture, Orleans, Deacons, Silver and Crab Hills, back roads of Black Rock, Bay land after twilight dressed as you are in Brooklyn or Leeds wherever your domicile.

    Provide BU with an account of your idyllic stroll.

    Recommend you stick to worn out not to mention annoying duopoly notion the island/society you skipped doesn’t exist anymore.

    Where did my post state Barbados and Guyana were in a race for oil discovery? Where did my posit say Guyana’s no longer poor status is because of this island’s missteps?

    If you cannot process simple statements of fact how can your contributions be credible.

    Barbadians passionate to participate in the homeland’s long awaited upward trajectory are obliged to raise their hands at home and over in away.

    The abstract inapplicable drivel posted by some stationed in the international arena (and some at home) is absolutely disconnected from real on the ground Caribbean existence.

    New York Times wrote an interesting piece sometime ago ” Barbados No Longer Blasted Paradise.” Take a look.

  19. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    Dinks Gripe and Josh
    This is what you wrote:

    “Guyana’s search for black gold began after the lotta long talk in Barbados. That nation has come up big with vast reserves to make OPEC blush.“

    I stated that Guyana and Barbados were never in any oil race. That was to strengthen my point that your statement as quoted cannot stand serious scrutiny. It does not mean that you said it. It’s called interpretation.

    The obvious inference is that Guyana began to search for oil “ after” Barbados. In other words that Guyana capitalised on the opportunity after all we did was “ a lotta of long talk”.

    Now as you are quite aware Barbadians living overseas don’t know that the country has changed since we are cut off from all communications. As a matter of fact we know nothing at all.
    But what we do know is that where ignorance is bliss it’s folly to be wise.

  20. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    Anybody with the faintest knowledge of socio economic issues in the Caribbean will know that Guyana was giving various oil companies exploration agreements going back to the seventies. It was a known fact that Guyana always had possibilities of producing oil.

  21. Hal Austin Avatar
    Hal Austin

    @ William

    Now as you are quite aware Barbadians living overseas don’t know that the country has changed since we are cut off from all communications. As a matter of fact we know nothing at all.(Quote)

    Who is a Barbadian? A public servant, out of the country as her nation’s diplomatic representative, faced not taking up an appointment in the Senate because she was out of the country too long.
    Th president had to change the constitution so that a well-deserving Barbadian national, with an MSc in political sociology from the LSE, could take up a seat in the Senate.
    @ William

    When I talk about the poor state of our press I am told I am being silly; when a British diplomatic says something similar she is taken seriously.
    Then of course we have the anonymous predators, who regularly misrepresent things in order to make a silly point. We should say that Barbados is world class, we punch above our weight, and we are the best educated people in the world.

  22. R.G Avatar
    R.G

    Then of course we have the anonymous predators, who regularly misrepresent things in order to make a silly point. {Quote}

    Don’t we also have the known predators, who regularly misrepresent things in order to make a silly point, too?

    Look at how they misrepresented Mottley’s entire speech to imply that she spoke only about children learning to swim and speak Mandarin.

    Or how a known silly predator preys on David BU and others whose opinions differ from his, by throwing insults, sarcastic remarks and offensive names at them. When the anonymous people do the same thing, he calls them predators.

    SMFH!!!

  23. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    @John. Guyana’s oil is over 120 miles offshore. What is your geologist friend smoking bro? I am sorry, but he can’t be taken seriously. The one drawback about this oil bonanza, is that, Guyana negotiated a poor deal with EXXON. They left billions of dollar on the table over the life of the contract. Nonetheless, this year alone the government is looking at oil inflows of US$ 300 million, and by 2025 the government is looking at oil inflows of US$5 billion. That’s more than today’s entire GDP of Barbados.

  24. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    @ Hal
    These jokers believe that Guyana just stumbled on its good fortunes. There has been oil exploration in Guyana going back to the 1940s. What we are experiencing here is the result of the uninformed depending on the even less informed for information.
    They cannot fathom that there is more information about our country in overseas university libraries than any high school or college at home.It’s a classic case of the truth being stranger than fiction.
    That is why the Duopoly can continue to govern us with utter contempt. It’s a pathetic reality but that’s where we are right now.
    The country certainly deserves better.

  25. Hal Austin Avatar
    Hal Austin

    @ William

    For Guyana, read Angola. Guyana has always been a rich country, bigger and with more natural resources than Britain. From rice to gold, Guyana had (has) it all. Guyana’s problem is not resources, it can easily be the food basket for the six million people in CARICOM, but its racialised politics. Will oil resolve this?

  26. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    @ Hal
    Guyana was the main prop of the Caribbean Food Plan imagined by Eric Williams. It shows how poor the group of regional leaders are at present. Sometimes when I read the utter nonsense on BU I am almost embarrassed.
    It’s a known fact that the Guyanese who came to Barbados in recent times engaged in serious farming. Given time they would have probably revived some aspects of our agriculture. We decided to ignore that and engaged in petty insults etc.
    Some joker even wrote on BU that Guyana would need our help with eco tourism. Obviously the joker did not know that Guyana has been a globally recognized leader in eco tourism.
    That’s the kind of inferior nonsense and arrogance that finds its way on BU.
    Now we read that Guyana went into oil exploration “ after” Barbados. These incredible positions can only be taken from positions of the ill informed.
    Like I said those Barbadians who live overseas know nothing . All we are learning on BU is that where ignorance is bliss it’s folly to be wise.

  27. Hal Austin Avatar
    Hal Austin

    @ William

    Do you remember years ago when Liz Thompson made that grand announcement that oil had been discovered off Barbados? Whatever happened to that?

  28. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    @ Hal
    I remember that episode. Was never clear what happened.Thats how the Duopoly operates – no need to explain anything.

  29. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    Suriname next door is getting on the act. Apache Energy, from the USA, recently announced an offshore find in Suriname.

    Drill baby dill! Having 100% renewable energy by 2030 is a noble endeavor. Nothing wrong in dreaming. However, that should not stop us in exploiting our natural resources. Be like Norway. Norway is the is one of the biggest crusader of climate change and renewable energy, while at the same time exploiting it’s hydrocarbon resources to the max. Go figure.

  30. David Avatar
    David

    @fortyacres

    Funny how Barbados has been leading the renewable energy talk and now hearing we looking for the black gold. Funny world we live.

    You do not see the conflict?

  31. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    Tullow Energy, from the UK, signed a production sharing contract (psc) with Jamaica in 2015. After running a successful 3D survey offshore jamaica in 2018, the analysis so far are looking positive. They have identified several promising structures, with one having a potential of 220 million barrels of oil. That’s decent, but nothing to write home about. Tullow will make a final decision by june 2020 whether to drop the project or continue and start drilling.

    A few years ago the PM of Grenda boasted about natural gas find offshore Grenada. I haven’t heard nothing since. The more CARICOM is energy independent, better it is for our prosperity.

  32. fortyacresandamule Avatar
    fortyacresandamule

    @David. Life is full of contradiction. Building a stable and prosperous economy is a complex process and not just black and white. At times it involves hypocritical and flip-flopping policy making.

  33. Miller Avatar
    Miller

    @ Donks, Gripe and Josh February 7, 2020 4:38 AM
    “Time to drill for the damn oil.”
    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    And sell it to whom? The world is awash with oil. From Saudi Arabia to America to Nigeria to Venezuela and even to Ghana and now Guyana and soon Cuba

    What do you think is going to happen when Maduro is replaced and an American-backed replacement has to find quick revenue streams to build back the country?
    Venezuelans once enjoyed one of the highest standards of living on the South American continent and was a major player in the oil production and refining business.

    Would Barbados be drilling for crude to meet its local demand for finished petroleum products even though the government (both administrations) has agreed on a ‘renewable energy’ target which would make fossil fuels a minor player in the energy market?

    Barbados has no refining facilities to add any upstream value to the high-sulphur heavy-grade crude oil in the Bajan hydrocarbons basin.

    The world wants gas, not tar!

    BTW, the talk about digging for oil off Barbados has been around since the late 1970’s was Tom Adams was the Prime Minister.
    Barbados, today, cannot even meet its ‘in-land’ production targets far less attract FDI in the risky offshore sector.

    Even your preferred administration has made a dog’s dinner out of the whole offshore drilling mirage.

    What ever became of that US$ 6 million signature bonus from Billition? Was it divvy up among the MoF Sinliar and his pals with their John Hancock’s indistinguishably scribbled in black fool’s gold all across the page of the economic bonanza promised a few years to the same economically-depressed Bajans living in the underbelly of false prosperity ?

  34. David Avatar
    David

    @fortyacres

    So true and disappointing at the same time.

  35. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    Alternatives.

    https://www.innovativewealth.com/inflation-monitor/what-products-made-from-petroleum-outside-of-gasoline/

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