700 people will work directly on gas-to-shore project – Exxon rep

– company fully committed to growing Guyanese workforce

Oil giant ExxonMobil is eyeing the employment of 700 locals during the installation of the gas-to-shore pipeline, even as it reiterates its commitment to local content in Guyana and growing its local workforce.
According to Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited’s (EEPGL) Public and Government Affairs Advisor Janelle Persaud, the 700 Guyanese the company estimates will be employed will also work on the construction aspect of the gas processing facilities.
“We estimate that approximately 700 people will work directly on the pipeline during installation and gas processing facilities construction,” she explained.
“ExxonMobil Guyana is committed to growing our Guyanese workforce, developing the local supplier base and working with our contractors on all of our projects to grow local content,” Persaud also said.

The installation will see Exxon laying approximately 220 kilometres of pipe from the Liza Destiny Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel to the gas plant which will be located at Wales on the West Bank of Demerara (WBD). Initially, however, the pipeline will land at Crane on the West Coast of Demerara (WCD).
The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project says that the offshore pipeline installation phase of the project will employ approximately 300 workers at its peak. However, it was explained that this is a preliminary estimate that depends on construction/installation and support vessels.
The gas-to-shore project is a transformative project that will see gas from the Liza Field offshore Guyana being pumped onshore to generate power. The main objective of the initiative is to transport sufficient gas from the Stabroek Block’s petroleum operations to supply some 200-250 megawatts of energy to the national grid, leading to a significant reduction in electricity costs.
President Dr Irfaan Ali had previously said the gas-to-shore pipeline would lead to “big industrial development taking place there that is linked to not only power generation and a power plant.” He also said the investment on the Demerara River’s shoreside would create massive opportunities and a trickle-down effect.
Soon after the Government issued permit licences to Exxon for the Payara Development Project last year, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had announced that the Government would turn its attention to negotiating the gas-to-energy project.
A number of factors including geotechnical, geophysical and environmental were examined before Jagdeo announced recently that the Government had settled on Wales to land the pipelines for the project.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mark Phillips, who has responsibility for the energy sector, has previously said that the Government is looking to produce 200 megawatts of power from the gas-to-shore project by 2024.
Exxon has said that around 30 to 35 million cubic feet of natural gas would be required for the gas-to-shore project. Data from Norwegian research company Rystad Energy had indicated that less than 20 per cent of the 1.8 billion Barrels of Oil Equivalent (BOE) discovered last year was gas.