Critical government and national oil company role in their petroleum resource development: lessons for Guyana petroleum sector

Abstract

The discovery of vast deposits of petroleum resources in any state can arguably lead to many positive outcomes for the country, but for this favourable outcome to be actualised individual players have to perform some significant roles in achieving this goal. It has been proven that some economic development can be achieved through petroleum resources. Some studies have shown the vital roles governments, and national oil companies play in their domestic petroleum sector and even in the global petroleum sector. Recently, the national oil company model of managing petroleum resources has come under scrutiny and has been viewed as a medium of waste and corruption. This paper identifies that the national oil company model can lead to some positive outcomes for the economy of Guyana. Also, this paper identifies and analyses the critical roles a government and a national oil company play in the successful petroleum resource governance and the positive outcomes that can come from transparent and effective management of these resources. Furthermore, this paper argues the case for the presence of a national oil company in Guyana, considering that they are today considered to be a petroleum-rich state due to the sizeable recent petroleum discovery in the country.