Bloomberg places spotlight on Guyana’s unpreparedness for oil wealth

• Bloomberg, one of the world’s leading news platforms, has turned its spotlight once again on Guyana’s oil sector. This time, its focus was primarily on the nation’s preparedness to receive and efficiently manage the billions of oil revenue to flow from the ExxonMobil –led Stabroek Block.
• Bloomberg noted that while Guyana is mere months away from first oil production; its petroleum laws remain outdated; the Energy Department is underfunded; new and relevant laws have not been established; a regulatory body to oversee production is virtually nonexistent; and while a Natural Resource Fund was established to save as much as $5Bn in revenue per year by 2025, the government is still to put forward a plan on how it will use those funds.
• Bloomberg noted that all of this “unpreparedness” is taking place against the backdrop of confusion on when elections should be held and threats by Venezuela over Guyana’s territorial waters.

(Source: Kaieteur News)