More jobs projected with Liza Phase 2 development

DPI, GUYANA, Thursday, January 18, 2018

Even more Guyanese can now capitalise on opportunities from the oil and gas industry with the announcement by ExxonMobil that it is proceeding with the development of Liza Phase 2.

Public and Government Affairs Director of Exxon, Kimberly Brasington, in a recent interview with the Department of Public Information (DPI), said Liza Phase 2 will offer “more job opportunities”.

“There’s an opportunity for some shared services like shore base, some of the supply vessels which could likely be shared, but there will still be an increase in volume and definitely a completely different staff to actually staff it, cater it keep it secure so, all those things will be duplicated,” Brasington noted.

However, she cautioned that the number of jobs will not be as significant as other sectors. “It still is deep water offshore, in the grand scheme of things it still is relatively low employment opportunities because we’re talking in the hundreds of people instead of thousands of people.”

According to the project summary submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Liza Phase 2 is expected to employ 600 persons at peak during the well-drilling and installation of the FPSO. That number will eventually decline to a peak 100-140 when production operations (including FPSO and tanker) begin.

Liza Phase 2 is currently awaiting authorisation from the EPA for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before proceeding with the development.

Brasington noted that Guyana is beginning to see the “build-on effect of an actual industry” as the company continues with Phase One development of the Liza field which is located in the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana. Oil production, from Liza Phase 1, is scheduled to begin in 2020.

The Liza field alone is estimated to contain more than one billion barrels of oil, of the more than 3.2B estimated barrels of oil in the Stabroek Block, with each phase having an estimated lifespan of 20 years. Liza Phase 2 is anticipated to begin production by mid-2022.

“Up until this point, and really still at this point until the project does get sanctioned, but in theory, you’re going from one single development to building an industry where you have multiple developments,” Brasington said.

More importantly, Guyana’s capacity to service the industry has since increased, Brasington pointed out. “I think Phase Two will look different from a capacity standpoint than Phase One because Guyana as a country has gained capacity.”

While cautioning that capacity building will take time, Brasington pointed out, “Capacity is being built at a rapid rate through the Centre for Local Business Development and people are competing for contrast and tenders and some winning successfully”.

The Centre for Business Development, which was established in July last year, is working with local companies to ensure that they can successfully bid for contracts in the industry. “I do think in the natural evolution of building our capacity here, there are going to be more and more opportunities and people are going to gain more and more experience and build their business strengths,” Brasington said.

Meanwhile, the government remains committed to ensuring that Guyanese benefit from the burgeoning oil and gas industry. Policies and legislation, like the Local Content Policy and the Petroleum Commission Bill, are being developed to ensure the industry is properly regulated and benefit Guyanese.

 

By: Tiffny Rhodius

 

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