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Trinidad eyes oil near Guyana, extending
boundaries as Exxon finds more wells
Vol. 30, Issue 6 QUEENS/LONG ISLAND/BRONX/MANHATTAN Feb. 8–14, 2019
By Bert Wilkinson
Guyana’s government
Wednesday said that American
supermajor ExxonMobil has
found substantial oil and gas
deposits in two more massive
offshore wells, taking its tally
to 12 with only two failures so
far, a rate of discovery that is
well above global averages a top
official said.
Mark Bynoe, director of
Energy at the Ministry of the
Presidency, announced the two
oil finds at the Talipia-1 and
Haimara-1 wells in the southwestern
portion of the Stabroek
offshore bloc near Suriname.
But even as authorities
begin to digest the continuing
success of the Guyana oil
field, authorities in neighboring
Trinidad are beginning to
wake up to the possibility of
the oil and gas-blessed nation
extending the outer limits of
the country’s continental shelf
to explore possible rich oil and
gas fields in acerages near Guyana.
Guyana’s so far proven
fields are located about halfway
between the two countries.
Trinidad’s Minister of Energy,
Franklin Khan told an
international conference in
Port of Spain this week that
the plan is to “extend our maritime
jurisdiction seawards to
the outer edge of our continental
margin. This would be
major development as it would
extend our boundaries to areas
in close proximity to the Guyana
Suriname Basin in which
major hydrocarbon discoveries
have already been made.
This country, therefore, has
an opportunity to increase its
access to potential oil and gas
resources. However, opportu-
Consul General Mackie Holder. Consulate General of Barbados in New York
Bajan consul general sets early agenda
By Alexandra Simon
He’s got big plans!
Barbados’ newest Consul
General, Mackie Holder, has
some big projects set for his
tenure. The recently appointed
diplomat hosted his first
big public event of the year
at Medgar Evers College on
Jan. 26 — a summit introducing
himself to the Barbadian
Diaspora, and exploring many
of his concerns and visions for
the year. He said many more
similar events will be held and
he will tackle and bring on as
many issues to the forefront.
Under his leadership, Holder
said he is switching a few
gears by prioritizing a new
action plan.
“We’ve had a number of
meetings with many associates,
and we’re going to have
a more business-like approach
and focus more on issues that
are affecting Barbadians here
and there — whether they
are health issues or economic
issues,” said Holder.
Holder formerly worked
with the island nation’s former
prime minister, Owen Arthur,
and has extensive experience
as a political organiser and
strategist.
He wants members of New
York’s Barbadian community,
and the larger Caribbean community
to show an interest in
programming the consulate
plans on spearheading this
year.
“It’s an honor to represent
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