With ExxonMobil announcing its tenth oil find in Guyana, the Head of the Department of Energy, Dr. Mark Bynoe, is encouraging Guyanese to look beyond the oil and gas for benefits from the sector.
In an interview, he explained that employment opportunities will be available for a number of sectors that will benefit from oil and gas.
“We need to see beyond oil and gas. There is a common perception that if I am not directly employed with the oil and gas sector, i am not benefitting from the oil and gas boom and this is just another announcement, where the revenues are basically going off to some other sector”, Dr. Bynoe said.
Exxon has reported that its tenth discovery of oil in Guyana’s waters has taken the number of discoverable oil barrels to over five billion barrels.
By 2025, the company intends to be producing close to 750,000 barrels of oil per day. For Guyana, experts believe the country’s economy could see growth by more than 1000% in the early years of oil production.
Already, a number of local businesses have been setting themselves up for the opportunities that the sector will provide. Dr. Bynoe said those opportunities will be many.
“The oil and gas sector impacts all range of sectors within the country and this include from the tourism sector to the hospitality sector to the services sector. So from your taxi drivers to your tour operators to the individuals looking to get their produce to markets. We are also aiming to reduce the cost of energy to provide for a better and more secured energy supply and also allow us to transition towards agro processing”, he noted.
Guyana will see first oil in 2020. Earlier this year, the government unveiled a Department of Energy. It intends to turn the Department into a full Government Ministry as first oil draws near.
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