The second Guyana International Petroleum Exhibition (GIPEX) wrapped up on Friday at the Marriot Hotel, Kingston Georgetown.
Addressing a closing press conference, Chief Executive Officer of Valiant Business Media –the company which organised the event –Mr. Shariq AbdulHai said the company invested over US$500,000 into executing the summit and exhibition.
He also explained that the Government of Guyana did not provide financial support to the event.
The Government, he said, provided institutional support which was crucial to the successful execution of the three-day conference and exhibition as he noted that the company hopes to have a longstanding relationship with Guyana.
The CEO reported that over 250 companies, 40 of which were local businesses, participated in the event, according to a press release.
“If we compare to last year, it’s definitely gone bigger,” he said.
GIPEX 2019 was held from November 20-22 with support from the Department of Energy and the Guyana Office for Investment. ExxonMobil Guyana supported the event as a Strategic Partner.
Director of the Department of Energy, Dr. Mark Bynoe, in his remarks at the wrap-up press conference, said that the aim of GIPEX 2019 was to build greater awareness within Guyana and its developing oil and gas sector. It was also intended to begin the discussion around how oil and gas resources can be deployed to aid in the economic development of the country.
He was optimistic about the networking that the Department was able to capitalize on.
“We had a number of interactions with a number of regional and international companies seeking to get a better understanding what is Government’s plan with regards to upstream, midstream and downstream activities within this particular sector and how they could possibly assist in all areas of the value chain,” Dr Bynoe said.
Dr. Bynoe is hopeful that the discussions would be beneficial to Guyana’s developing petroleum sector.
“As we move forward, we hope that the discussions we would have had both with the private and governmental sectors, that Guyana can see itself enhancing its capacity, raising its standard and broadening its investment portfolio as we seek to encourage greater foreign direct investment into Guyana,” Dr. Bynoe said.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) Owen Verwey told the media that his agency met with a number of potential foreign investors who are eager to set up businesses in Guyana.
“We have had about 19 different meetings in the last three days with different types of businesses,” he stated, adding, “The majority of people that I would have met were extremely positive about their experience at this event.”
Mr. Verwey also noted that many of the foreign companies are interested in partnering with local businesses.
Meanwhile, speaking to local businesses’ participation in GIPEX, President of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Nicholas Deygoo-Boyer said, “The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry was happy to work with the Department of Energy and Valiant Media to get local participation for local businesses exhibiting as well as delegates to the conference.”
According to the GCCI President, “We thought it important, and they thought it important as well, to make the conference accessible to locals who are now learning about the industry and seeking ways in which they can get involved in the industry.”
He is pleased with the number of local businesses that participated in the event.
