Nokta, Region One Chairman to handle resettlement talks
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Nokta, Region One Chairman to handle resettlement talks
Agreement to be laid in Parliament - HindsBy Gitanjali Singh
Stabroek News
May 22, 2000
Local Government Minister, Harripersaud Nokta and Region One chairman, Norman Whittaker will be negotiating the relocation of persons living in and around the area selected by Beal Aerospace Technologies for its spaceport operation.
Prime Minister Sam Hinds said he is not certain when actual negotiations will commence as this is linked to Beal's selection of the ideal spot for its launch site. However, Hinds told Stabroek News yesterday that initial discussions have already taken place with families within the area.
An area near the third lagoon between the Waini River and the Atlantic Ocean will be selected by Beal for launching rockets but the exact point is not known.
Hinds said that soil tests, surveys of the land and the selection of possible alternate layouts as well as the layout plans for the launch port are now to be done and some of these will help to determine the exact spot for the launch port.
The identification of the specific area will allow for a clearer understanding of how many families/persons living in and around the site will need to be relocated for safety.
Beal has allocated US$400,000 for compensation to the families which have to be relocated and the government is prepared to top this up and to provide titled land.
The government and Beal last Friday signed an agreement in preparation for a US$100M investment in a spaceport facility in Guyana. However, the agreement will not be closed until Beal gets the green light from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to proceed and this will depend on the results of an environmental impact assessment.
Hinds said that now that David Spoede, Vice-President of Beal has returned to Texas, the company will have to submit a formal proposal/request for an interim environmental permit to drain and clear the site. Spoede had said that apart from these activities, Beal will be investing in roads and docks to facilitate the clearing and draining of the area.
Asked to respond to the PNC's statement that it would use its political might to ensure that the deal does not go through, Hinds said he hopes better judgement prevails.
The Prime Minister said he looked at the tape of the public forum held at City Hall by the PNC last week and where concerns were raised by individuals about aspects of the agreement with Beal. Hinds said the government was conscious of those concerns raised and they have been "managed" in the agreement.
He noted the issue about employment priority for persons in Region 1 which is catered for in the agreement and assured that Beal has opted for environmentally friendly rocket launch propellants.
The government, Hinds said, intends to lay the agreement in parliament at the earliest opportunity. Hinds said he is not certain whether the agreement will be just laid in parliament or debated.
Beal, a company created in 1997 to privately launch heavy-lift vehicles for commercial satellites payloads, will pay the government US$3 per acre for 25,010 acres of land and will fork out US$1 for easement on another 76,000 annually. The government will get launch fees ranging from US$25,000 each for under six launches to US$100,000 each for over 19 launches and will be paid US$100,000 for administrative expenses. Recurrent expenditure in the start up years will only cover administrative costs and the easement fees.
It is expected that if the company gets the green light from the EPA construction on the spaceport will commence after 18 months.
The investment will realise 500 jobs in the construction phase and 200 long-term jobs. The company has committed itself to investing in maths, science and technology in Guyana.
The deal with Beal has been criticised for being too low on financial returns including the sale price for the land and the launch fees as well as an unprecedented 99-year tax holiday.
The inaugural launch of Beal's BA-2 heavy-lift launch vehicle is set for 2002 and the stage 2 engine test on the vehicle was done two months ago in Texas. That test was for the largest liquid rocket engine built since the Apollo space programme in the US of the 1960s.
Beal proposes to launch out of Cape Canaveral, Florida until its launch site here is ready. It will manufacture the vehicles in Texas, assemble them at Cape Canaveral and then ship them to Guyana for launching.
