Focus on energy cooperation
Editorial
Guyana Chronicle
August 17, 2003
NOT JUST Guyana, but all member states of the Caribbean Community should have a keen interest in the current initiatives between Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela to expand and deepen their cooperation that extends to developing what's being projected as a "single oil and gas reservoir" in the Caribbean region.
While there have been earlier separate official indications in Caracas and Port-of-Spain of such a possibility, what has inspired greater interest is the recent one-day meeting in Trinidad and Tobago between Prime Minister Patrick Manning and the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
A Memorandum of Understanding on bilateral cooperation on energy resources, was signed in Caracas last week between ministerial representatives of the two neighbouring states.
As signalled earlier by President Chavez himself, this agreement could pave the way for the creation of a multinational corporation, likely to be known as "Petroamerica" or "Petrosud".
It is envisaged that it will operate on the basis of the oil and natural gas reserves of Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago to their mutual benefit, as well as to the economic advantage of the Caribbean region where a number of countries are already involved in the concessionary Caracas energy arrangement.
For his part, the Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister remains quite enthusiastic about his proposed cross-border piped natural gas project for the Caribbean region, a long-term visionary programme for which, his critics say, there is yet to be made available the result of an economic feasibility study.
Natural Gas
Having first outlined his government's initial concept of region-wide piped natural gas at the 23rd CARICOM Summit in Georgetown in July 2002, Prime Minister Manning subsequently revisited the issue at last month's CARICOM Summit in Montego Bay.
Manning's idea holds the promise of a reduction of some 30 per cent in current energy costs, including electricity, for countries that agree to become partners in the intra-regional piped gas project that could also result in price stability and predictability over the medium and long term.
Even less known are details of President Chavez's own concept of the proposed multinational oil and gas corporation. But together, these projects point to a significant new level of cooperation in the vital energy sector that could make enormous difference to plans for the Caribbean's economic transformation.
It is, therefore, understandable why there is likely to be close monitoring of the outcome of the scheduled meeting in Caracas in October between President Chavez and Prime Minister Manning.
The United States of America, which imports approximately 60 per cent of its liquified natural gas from Trinidad and Tobago, and for which Venezuela remains an important source of its oil needs, is also reported to be paying very close attention to the initiatives between the two Caribbean neighbours in the development of their energy sector.
An extension of America's interest as well as CARICOM's is expected to emerge during a forthcoming 'Energy Summit' being planned by the USA to take place in Miami, possibly in November.
We shall continue to monitor all related developments.
