BVI eyes partnership with Guyana in oil & gas, other sectors

The British Virgin Islands (BVI), which is well known as a financial services hub, has expressed its interest in collaborating with Guyana when it comes to a number of sectors, including the growing oil and gas sector.
During a press conference on Monday in the BVI when an announcement was made of visa free travel for Guyanese, the Premier of the island nation, Natalio Wheatley, also revealed that BVI is exploring opportunities for collaboration in Guyana’s oil and gas sector.
“We want to be able to stimulate economic activity, whether through cooperation on agriculture or cooperation on financial services as it pertains to their oil and gas sector, providing those services to them, supporting our financial services sector which accounts for about 60 per cent of government revenue.”
“And so that’s the focus. Focusing on things like that. But overall, of course, in terms of creating more revenue, we have a focus on a tourism sector,” Wheatley further explained.

In the meantime, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Guyana and BVI is in the works, with officials from both countries working on its drafting. Wheatley was hopeful that they could conclude the MoU within six months. According to Wheatley, the MoU is being led by the BVI Ministry of Financial Services, Labour and Trade.
“(The MoU) was passed in cabinet some weeks ago. For us to have a Memorandum of Understanding with Guyana, focusing on a number of areas. Trade and investment, immigration, perhaps agriculture. And some other areas.”
“We had to seek permission from the United Kingdom (UK) Government, secretary of state. That’s consistent with our constitution. So, we had the cabinet agreement that allowed us to do that. And now we’re engaging with officials from Guyana and putting together this MoU,” Wheatley explained.
In Guyana, United States (US) company ExxonMobil and its partners are producing oil in the Stabroek Block with the help of three Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels; the Liza Destiny, the Liza Unity and the Prosperity. They are respectively working on the Liza One, Liza Phase Two, and Payara projects.
The People’s Progressive Party (PPP/C) Government also held an oil block auction last year, with plans underway for a second such auction. Among those awarded oil blocks during the first bid round was a Guyanese female-led company, Sispro Inc, which received a shallow block (S3) and a deep-water block (D2).
Other shallow blocks were awarded to Total Energies EP Guyana BV in consortium with Qatar Energy International E&P LLC and Petronas E&P Overseas Ventures SDN BHD (Malaysia), which got Block S4; Liberty Petroleum Corporation of the US and Ghana-based Cybele Energy Limited, which got Block S7, and International Group Investment Inc of Nigeria, which got two blocks – S5 and S10.
Another shallow block, S8, was awarded to the Stabroek Block partners – ExxonMobil Guyana Limited, Hess New Ventures Exploration Limited, and CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited. The second deep-water block – D1 – was awarded to Delcorp Inc Guyana, which comprises Watad Energy and Communications Limited and Arabian Drilling Company of Saudi Arabia.
The auction was launched back in December 2022 and closed off in September 2023. In total, there were 14 offers made on those blocks – including two for deep-sea blocks and six for shallow-area blocks. (G3)