Minister of State Joseph Harmon has announced that Cabinet has officially approved the creation of a Department of Energy that will, from now on oversee Guyana’s oil and gas sector.
Minister Harmon holds responsibility to report on the department’s functioning to the National Assembly.
Harmon made this announcement during a post-Cabinet press briefing earlier today (Friday), where he disclosed that the matter engaged Cabinet’s attention.
He assured that responsibilities lying with the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, such as the Guyana Power and Light, will remain untouched, for now.
Harmon noted that a department would be less likely to lead to more bureaucracy than creating an Energy Ministry.
Asked who would head the department, Harmon noted that while someone has not been identified as yet; he had ultimate responsibility for the unit before the national assembly.
Government had announced its intention last month to move away the responsibilities of the oil and gas sector from Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman.
Trotman, and the Guyana Government as a whole, has received much criticism for the manner in which the emerging oil and gas sector is being handled.
