The troubled gas compression on the Liza Destiny Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel offshore Guyana has caused Opposition Leader, Joseph Harmon to request a meeting with the local executives of ExxonMobil.
Harmon recently wrote to the President of ExxonMobil Guyana’s President Alistair Routledge indicating that he is in receipt of numerous queries from the Opposition Members of Parliament, constituents of the APNU/AFC coalition, civil society and concerned citizens, who have expressed their worry that Exxon’s local affiliate Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited’s (EEPGL’s) performance, since inception, appears to be far below expectations.
After being sent all the way to Germany for repairs for several weeks and only returning recently, Exxon last week said the gas compressor on Liza Destiny has once again failed, resulting in oil production having to be reduced to 30,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd).
“This reported lingering malfunctioning of equipment that continues to delay the termination of excess flaring of produced gas, plus the significant reduction of operations to a bare minimum production level, are of considerable concerns to the APNU+AFC Opposition, which as you are aware, represents almost half of the Guyanese population in the National Assembly,” the Opposition Leader said in the letter that was released to the media on Sunday.
As such, he added, “I, therefore, seek an urgent meeting with you and your executive team at the earliest mutually convenient opportunity to be briefed on matters to include this recent development, the root cause(s) of equipment failures resulting in excessive flaring and reduced production, your plan with schedule for permanently addressing these root cause(s), and the short and long term economic and environmental implications for all of Guyana.”
Harmon further asked to be accompanied by senior Members of Parliament including the Shadow Minister for Oil and Gas, David Patterson.
On Tuesday last, Exxon in a statement explained that as it was conducting the final testing phase of the reinstalled flash gas compressor and other components of the system on the Liza Destiny FPSO, they encountered an additional problem with the discharge silencer.
The US oil giant noted that a team from SBM Offshore, Germany manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions and ExxonMobil were on site to assess repairs, with support from engineering experts in Europe and the USA.
In the meantime, Government through the Natural Resources Ministry, Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has been receiving regular updates on the issue and is working with EEPGL to expeditiously resolve these complications with the compressor.
