Rowley gets Petrotrin report

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday received a promised status report from the board of directors of state oil company Petrotrin. Rowley met with the Petrotrin board at the Diplomatic Centre in St Ann’s. A statement from the OPM said Rowley met with the board yesterday.

The report details progress made by the board since its appointment last September. At that time, Rowley said Cabinet had decided to restructure the company in a bid to see it become profitable and begin making a contribution to the economy.

The statement from the OPM said throughout 2017, Government continued its systematic review of the operations at Petrotrin. Last June, Rowley received a report from a Petrotrin Review Committee appointed last March, to examine certain issues at the company. The establishment of this committee followed a Cabinet decision which called for an assessment of Petrotrin in light of falling revenues, allegations of mismanagement and decreasing oil prices worldwide.

Rowley said that Petrotrin had run up huge debts which it was unable to pay and which had to be met by Finance Minister Colm Imbert at a time when the minister was struggling to meet the other expenses which he had to deal with. He said the first of these debts comes due in 2019 - U.S $850 million in one payment - and another smaller payment due shortly afterwards. Rowley also spoke about Petrotrin’s falling oil production and environmental risks posed by its ageing infrastructure.

Imbert, Energy Minister Franklin Khan, Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis, Minister in the OPM Stuart Young, Public Utilities Minister Robert Le Hunte and Minister in the Ministry of Finance Allyson West were also present at the meeting. The members of Petrotrin’s Board of Directors are Wilfred Espinet (Chairman), Reynold Ajodhasingh (Deputy Chairman), Anthony Chan Tack, Nigel Edwards, Joel Harding, Selwyn Lashley, Eustace Nancis, Linda Rajpaul and Randhir Rampersad. Petrotrin has been in the spotlight because of the fake oil scandal at the company.

Last month, Petrotrin announced the termination of its contract with A&V Drilling and Workover Limited, This lease operator was at the centre of the scandal. A&V Drilling, through its attorney Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj SC, has threatened to take legal action against Petrotrin unless the company enters into arbitration.