I hope the Vice President considers the Mitsubishi gas study
Dear Editor,
The article entitled, “A Japanese study said gas-to-power is viable” (SN April 18) is enlightening and timely. Some self-correction is needed here and an adjustment now that this new piece of information is available. Thanks to SN, in the midst of the uneven discourses (not a proper discussion) about a likely gargantuan gas-to-shore project that was decidedly immobile for Wales.
I have said publicly before that I am for a gas-to-shore project, but on the condition of an independent and credible and trusted study. I cannot support because government leaders say that, because leaders have said many things, we regret and pay harsh prices. Based on existing studies, still not fully disclosed, I signaled my preference for a site in Clonbrook first and in the Berbice area second; the first due to the drier line, the second due to deep water ports and economic zone offsetting possibilities. Now properly informed by the essence of this 2019 government-commissioned study, I must reconcile what is now called with what I previously approved, what is not ‘ possibly the best option, be it Clonbrook or Berbice. Otherwise, to the dismay of the Hon. Vice President, Wales either. My emphasis is on presenting the project to Guyanese is the best possible option. I regret not telling Hon. Vice President what he wants to hear, what he has reflexively called ‘no brainer.’
What a Japanese study in 2019 illuminated was that all Guyanese, including the Vice President, were onshore with slightly less viability than offshore. The clue is small, but they are there and they add up. I notice that they are strangely close to the numbers that the Vice President has bandied about quite proudly and sometimes querulously. To be clear, I trust the Japanese and an entity like Mitsubishi that advocates offshore rather than onshore. To be even clearer, I don’t trust the Vice President at all and that is anything; especially on something as memorable and costly as a gas-to-shore project. He likes big numbers and big projects; strangely, he does not like the big disclosures involved.
That offshore study should have been publicized from the outset and a final decision made by this successive coalition or government in favor of what led. Again, offshore is a more viable option than onshore. The latter undoubtedly has its share of positives, but those are supported by the sea. Now that we have the basic premise of this reputable study, it is troubling that the Vice President continues to barrel forward impatiently and furiously with land and Wales. Hopefully, it does not dismiss Mitsubishi people as lacking brain cells altogether. I will leave it alone that this study and this recommendation were hidden from the Guyanese public.
Truly,
Lall GHK