Exxon cannot survive without Guyana
Kaieteur News – It may sound far-reaching, but it is not. Exxon cannot survive without Guyana; at the very least, his hard way in the fight for persistently persuasive profitability would mostly be made more difficult. As we have noted and restated in this publication, without Guyana, many of the prospects of this American oil powerhouse are becoming strained and strained.
Although we have said it before, and several times, I would say it again: Exxon’s profitability and top-tier viability depends on its investments in Guyana’s oil sector, with its many oil-rich blocks still to be explored and discovered. Recently, some schools are thinking from people who should know that there is potential for what is called ‘supremacy’ in some of the areas below those waters of ours. In the simplest of terms, and to give our fellow citizens an idea of what a lofty field could mean for this country, such a field would hold the equivalent of many billions of barrels of oil and for several decades to come. There is the example of the Saudi Arabs with its superb Ghawar dominion, the stuff of legends.
The Ghawar field was discovered in 1948, 72 years ago, and still produces several million barrels of oil a day. At one time, for half a century, this area was responsible for almost two-thirds of Saudi Arabia’s total oil output. As of 10 years ago, the lofty Ghawar field had produced over 65 billion barrels of oil. Now, with that in mind, there’s some talk of a possible supremacy somewhere in the folds of our seabed.
This is what might make Guyanese people who go down in history especially blessed, and of those mythical ones who read and dream about them, but that always seems to avoid most. This is what, with absolute certainty, would make ExxonMobil rise again and resume its position at the top of the oil world. The discoveries here have been shocking, with many more still to come, one of which may be a super-sleeper in an oil field. As we consider all this, loudly present or otherwise, it should become more apparent to Guyanese observers and citizens that Exxon needs Guyana more than Guyana needs Exxon.
To be sure, we need the company and its expertise, technology, and cash investments to explore and capitalize on what is there, not only for its benefit but also for our benefit. But we cannot be ignorant or indifferent to the unstable and shaky – financial – situation in which the company finds itself. He finds it difficult to maintain payment of his rich dividend to impatient, watchful and anxious investors. We are no longer talking about mother-and-pop investors holding a hundred shares of the company’s stock, but about the money managers, who are sharp and sophisticated about the company’s opportunities, possibilities, and prospects from September returns on its investments. Most of the larger investment companies would routinely hold millions of shares of Exxon. So, they want results that power their product for them to demonstrate in terms of their skills and competence, as well as compete with their professional peers in the investment world in what is a securities game.
Those keen investment managers look to Exxon for returns, and when they do, all their eyes are fixed on Guyana this new oil border, where so much Exxon money, and its hopes, are vested . The company has laid many of its eggs in Guyana’s basket, and it cannot fail. He is also determined not to flinch or buckle from the strong contractual position that gives him an abundance of cheap oil. That cheap oil enables Exxon to keep its investors happy and calm for the time being. But instead of looking at Exxon’s position as a stranger to this country, it should be the other way around.
Production must continue and without interruption. The company cannot risk that or afford it, despite its previous bluster and hard-line stance. The leaders of this country must recognize the strong hand they hold and play hard ball. Any appeal by Exxon to the courts to uphold the sanctity of its contract will take time, even with speedy hearings. But unrest will create uncertainty in the minds of its financial investors. And Wall Street investors and money are operating on perception, and hating even the smallest wrinkles in what was taken for granted, but interfering.
This is why we agree with Dr. Vincent Adams, former head of EPA Guyana. Guyanese leaders must call Exxon bluff in a hard and bare-corner approach. We want more about our oil. We demand more about it. We need to get more about this oil of ours, and there are many ways in which this can be made, ranging from renegotiating potential contracts to serious cost-cutting responsibilities in multiple fields. The bottom line is this: the company is vulnerable right now. Our leaders must find the strength and the will to face Exxon, and say: it must be this way, and no other way. Let us start over.