Young refutes Kamla's Petrotrin $b profitability in 2018

ACTING Prime Minister Stuart Young has rejected claims by Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar about former state oil company Petrotrin making a profit in 2018.

He gave his rebuttal in a Facebook post on February 28.

The company was restructured in November that year to Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Ltd (TPHL).

In a newspaper report, Persad-Bissessar said a future UNC government will not honour any agreement relating to the refinery's sale or lease. She claimed Petrotrin made a $1.6 billion profit in 2018.

Young said he was compelled to respond to another unfortunate attempt by Persad-Bissessar to mislead the population with respect to the facts surrounding Petrotrin's financial standing of Petrotrin in 2018.

"I have attached the relevant pages of the consolidated financial statements for Petrotrin for 2018 which clearly show a $16.487 billion loss for 2018."

Young said, "It is also concerning that a former prime minister aspiring to lead our country again would continually attempt to mislead the population and indicate to potential investors that she and her party would not honour legal agreements that may be entered into for the benefit of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago."

The prime minister is due to resign on March 16 and Young will succeed him on that date.

He said, "The behaviour of the UNC leader is most unfortunate and unbecoming."

Young repeated his comment at a news conference at the Office of the Prime Minister at Whitehall to the population to make their choices very carefully in this year's general election.

On February 27, Young said Nigerian company Oando PLC has been selected as the preferred bidder for the lease of the refinery.

He added Cabinet had informed TPHL of its non-objection to proceeding with discussions with Oando.

"The ball is now in TPHL's court. The Cabinet is satisfied with this decision, and I urge the public to stay informed and make decisions with the country's future in mind."

Referring to concerns about Oando's status, Young said, "It was noted that Oando had been delisted from both the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in South Africa and the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 2024 due to late filings of their financials."

He added both delistings were resolved.

According to its website, Oando said, "As a proudly indigenous company, our mantra remains to proffer sustainable solutions that will benefit our business and improve the sector, nation and people’s lives.

This, the company continued, has "guided our strategy and driven us to consistently pioneer within the sector, from being the first private sector company to pioneer the development of Nigeria’s foremost natural gas distribution network."

Oando confirmed it is listed on the South African and Nigerian Stock Exchanges.

For the nine months ending September 30, 2024, the company reported a 36 per cent revenue increase and a profit after tax of N$76.3 billion.