Package of promises

TWO foreigners met with the board of Petrotrin yesterday along with the Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU) as the union sought to encourage the board to lease the cash-strapped company to a consortium rather than close it down.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday at OWTU’s Henry Street, Port of Spain office, Ancel Roget did not disclose who the businessmen were only that they were international and reputable as they do not invest in anything that is not worthy.

Newsday detected a distinct American accent from one of the two men who were in the building but not at the press conference. Roget said the consortium seeks to pay all of Petrotrin’s debt and cover the cost of restructuring the plant, but did not divulge how much they were willing to lease Petrotrin for.

Roget questioned why the board and by extension the government were not opened to the idea.

He added that apart from the two foreigners, there are locals and the OWTU which were part of the consortium. Asked if the OWTU was considering using the $10 billion in the two pension funds to help keep Petrotrin opened, Roget said that was not an option at this time.

He added that while the board is going ahead with plans to wind up the company, they are still making presentations to the. Roget said the price of fuel at the pumps will fluctuate as the government continues to remove the subsidy bit by bit and is preparing to import fuel.

He added that what is needed is to increase the output of crude oil which can be done to increases the barrels of oil to at least 20,000 more daily and make Petrotrin more efficient. Roget said the plan to close down Petrotrin was to spite the OWTU and came without any advise to the Government.

He asked the country not to believe anything that the Government is saying regarding the shutting down of Petrotrin. He added that Petrotrin was closed after the Government claimed the OWTU rejected a proposal to restructure it.

Roget, who said he did not listening to the budget presentation entitled “Turn Around” by Finance Minister Colm Imbert, labelled the budget a “package of promises”.

He added that many of the projects listed by Imbert had no start dates and therefore were just “promises to appease the population”. He added that all increases promised in the budget will be consumed by inflation coming off the $1 increase in the price of super gasoline.

He added that the failure of the Ultra Low-Sulphur Diesel project and other failed projects is what caused Pretrotrin to become cash strapped under mismanagement by successive governments.