Quamina intends to make state oil companies profitable

HE has been criticised for his lack of knowledge of the oil industry, but newly appointed chairman of Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Ltd, Michael Quamina is bent on proving his critics wrong.

Quamina has said he intends to continue the work started by his predecessor, Wilfred Espinet, to make the subsidiary companies profitable,

The attorney gave the commitment after he met with the TPHL management team on Monday.

A statement from TPHL confirmed that Quamina and Newman George, who is to head two of the subsidiary companies, met on Monday with members of the TPHL management teams to get an overview of the operations and business update.

It is the first meeting since the government’s August 22 announcement of Quamina’s appointment to chair TPHL and Petroleum Company of TT (Petrotrin) and Heritage Petroleum Company Ltd.

George’s appointment as chairman of Paria Fuel Trading Company Ltd and of Guaracara Refining Company Ltd was also announced by then acting prime minister Colm Imbert and Energy Minister Franklin Khan at last Thursday’s post-Cabinet news briefing.

Espinet, who led the restructuring of Petrotrin and the formation of TPHL and the subsidiary companies, was fired last week along with Mike Wylie as CEO of Heritage.

Wylie is being treated for cancer in the US.

The release said Quamina and George received presentations from a team of executives and consultants led by Lisa Ali, head of the TPHL implementation team, and Nigel Campbell, Heritage’s CFO.

“They both assured the management teams that the board changes would in no way affect business plans or relationships with suppliers and or partners,” the statement said.

Quamina is reported as saying, “The TPHL group’s mandate and business strategy remain unchanged and all of our operating companies will continue to work towards becoming sustainably profitable.

“To date, TPHL has met all of its financial and operational targets and I was encouraged by the management presentations, all of which suggest that the group would continue to achieve its objectives.”