Venezuela, CARICOM and energy
Editorial
Guyana Chronicle
February 28, 2007
(** PRESIDENT Hugo Chavez will be among Heads of State of the Rio Group of countries attending this week's summit in Guyana. Energy cooperation in addressing social and economic challenges is expected to be among matters for consideration. We publish below, courtesy of the newspaper, yesterday's editorial in the Barbados Daily Nation, that's quite relevant to Venezuela's role in cooperation with CARICOM countries as an energy supplier.)
THOSE yet to appreciate the significance of Venezuela's emergence, under Hugo Chavez's leadership, as a major energy supplier to CARICOM following that of Trinidad and Tobago, would have had a timely reminder this past weekend.
It was the hurried visit to Caracas by Jamaica's Energy Minister Phillip Paulwell, to arrange an urgently required supply of liquified natural gas (LNG) after learning that due to an unforeseen problem, Trinidad and Tobago could not now honour a contractual obligation to do so.
In this very sensitive matter involving the breach of an agreement between two leading CARICOM partners on the vital issue of energy supply, their respective opponents and critics may be only too anxious to cast blame.
Questioning, for instance, the intelligence, the data that had informed the Memorandum of Understanding of 2004 by which the Patrick Manning government had committed itself to guaranteeing supply of some 1.1 million tonnes of LNG annually and linked, crucially, to a US$1.6 billion expansion of Jamaica's alumina smelter project.
Whatever the blame to be apportioned, it cannot, however, be assumed that the Manning administration would have knowingly brought about such deep embarrassment to itself and, worse, so hurtful to Jamaica, necessitating fast-track arrangements with Venezuela to resolve a crisis situation.
What is quite relevant to note here is that Jamaica's resort to Venezuela as an alternative source for its urgently needed LNG, has been made possible by the 2005 PetroCaribe project, initiated by the Chavez administration.
In its wider framework, CARICOM countries benefit not only from concessionary terms for energy supplies but aid for economic development. Jamaica has to date been perhaps the biggest beneficiary.
A related factor in Venezuela's increasing involvement as a supplier of energy to CARICOM member countries is the new warming of relations between the administrations of President Chavez and Prime Minister Manning, with the recent agreement between them to share the huge natural gas reserves in what is known as the Platforma Deltana gas field.
Originally claimed as total Venezuelan ownership, 25 per cent of the estimated reservoir of ten trillion (repeat trillion) cubic feet of natural gas will now be available to Trinidad and Tobago.
Manning would have had that in mind when he recently spoke of his government's "determination" to honour existing contractual energy agreements; and to remain an important energy supplier to CARICOM, while recognising also the emergence of Venezuela as a partner.
Manning's Foreign Minister, Arnold Piggott, was to subsequently declare last week his recognition of Venezuela as now the "primary supplier of energy" for CARICOM. In this context, therefore, those seeking to satisfy their own interests by sowing seeds of conflict between CARICOM and President Chavez’ administration, with ideological arguments about the "Washington dimension", should engage in some critical rethink.