Hinds addresses Beal deal concerns
Prime Minister, Samuel Hinds, yesterday assured the National Assembly that the agreement reached with Beal Aerospace Technologies of Texas will be laid in the National Assembly. He said that the negotiations were ongoing and that compromises by both sides prevented any full disclosure before the end of the discussions. The Prime Minister gave his assurance to make the agreement public when he made a statement on the status of the negotiations to the House to clear up some errors in the information which had appeared in the press and to address concerns which had been raised. These concerns are related to the proposed sale of land, the issue of families living the area and environmental concerns related to the turtles who nest at Shell Beach. "We would certainly lay all the agreements in parliament when the project would have completed but along the way we are making disclosures and we are going to be meet at their request, with the PNC," Hinds said. The Prime Minister has met representatives of Guyana Is First, the Guyana Association of Professional Engineers and some environmental activists. Public forums on the issue are planned. In addition, Beal representatives had spoken with the PNC and other interested persons at the instigation of the executive director of Go-Invest earlier this year. Another meeting with the PNC is scheduled for tomorrow but Hinds did not make it clear whether the Beal representatives will be present. Addressing the issue of the sale of land to be Beal, about which some concerns had been raised, the Prime Minister explained that an area within the immediate vicinity of the launch site needed to be cleared of people so that in the event there was a launch failure, the public would not be exposed to any injury. Accordingly, he explained that government has accepted the delineation of the prime launch site as the land within a five miles radius. As a result of the commitment that Beal will be making to the development of the area, which lies between the Waini River and the coastline to the northwest, it has been agreed to sell the company 26,010 acres on which it will erect reception buildings, runways and so on. However, he said that the sale would be on the condition that if, within a five-year period the area had not been developed for a launch site, it would revert back to the government and the money paid by Beal would be refunded. Also, he said that beyond the initial five-year period, if any other use was to be made of that area, government's permission will be required and were it to be sold, then government would have the right of first refusal. "We think that that arrangement seeks to balance the concerns of Guyana and Guyanese and the needs of the investment." The Prime Minister explained too that the government had granted Beal easement over a buffer zone totalling some 76,000 acres, explaining that where there are runways there are restrictions on the land as to what buildings could be erected and the height of these buildings. "So there is an easement that would be granted around the primary site that whilst it would available and free to access, there would no permanent building put up and during a period before each launch there would be restrictions on access for security reasons." The Prime Minister disclosed too that concerns raised about turtles which breed in the area, had been an early consideration of the government and the strip of land, which is about half to three-quarters of a mile from the coast had been excluded from the agreement. He said too that the government has had consultations with Dr Peter Pritchard an expert on turtles who works in that area. Dealing with people living in the area to be covered by the agreement, the Prime Minister explained that there had been a number of teams on the ground learning what is there and discussions are to be held with the 40 or so families farming along some 60-70 miles along the Waini River and "we expect that we can come to an agreement with them." Addressing concerns about the lack of information about Beal's track record, the Prime Minister said since rocket launching was now starting up, there was no track record of any of the dozen or so new companies, including Beal, seeking to become involved in this business. However, he said that the government was "looking closely at the people Beal has retained ... so that we are confident that this is a group that has the experience and expertise to undertake this activity in a sustainable way." As to the benefits to be derived by Guyana from an association with Beal, the Prime Minister observed that "it would be good for Guyana to be known for other things than maybe being the site of Jonestown. "We need to improve our image. We need to have an image that is forward looking; an image that associates us with future economic activity."
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