ExxonMobil paid EPA US$9M for one year of flaring gas

American oil giant remains proud of its “strong ExxonMobil last year paid safety record” and that it has US$9 million to the been reporting all its Environmental Protection emissions and releases to the Agency (EPA) to flare E PA A c c o r d i n g t o excess gas at its offshore ExxonMobil,“Thecompany operations in the Stabroek has always been open and Block. transparentaboutthevolume

This information was of gas being flared and has revealed during the routinely provided this and Consideration of the o t h e r o p e r a t i o n a l Budgetary Estimates on i n f o r m a t i o n t o t h e Monday Minister of government, media, and Parliamentary Affairs and other stakeholder groups.” Governance, Gail Teixeira

Contrarytotheseclaims,one explained,“Therevenuethat Energy Technologist, Mr came in, as you will see Alfred Bhulai said that his under the revenue, $1 8 requestsforflaringdatafrom billion came as revenue last both the oil company and year and this is the money EPAhavebeenignored. that the EPA got from the

It must be noted that this flaring tax that was information is now available introduced.” on the Ministry of Natural

She said in the Budget Resources website, see link document this year, the b e l o w agency did not cater for https://petroleum.gov.gy/dat revenue as flaring is hard to a-visualization?tid=206 be available to the EPA to through flaring to US$50. It data.

But what the Production project. Flaring, as the word spend which was confirmed can therefore be determined In July last year, Manager carefully dodged

At the same time, she suggests, is the process of by the minister The EPA that the oil giant made Production Manager at was questions posed by pointedoutthattheregulator burningassociatedgasthatis introduced a flaring fine payments on approximately ExxonMobil Guyana, Mike Kaieteur News on the hasnotincreasedtheamount brought up during oil following rampant offshore 180,000 tonnes of Carbon Ryan told members of the amount of gas flared to date as“theyfeelthattherewould production Notably, this flaring by Exxon’s operator, Dioxide equivalent (CO2e) media fraternity that the via the Liza Destiny FPSO be (or) they (ExxonMobil) process emits harmful gases Esso Exploration and flaredlastyear company was finally able to for the two-year period are not expected to continue into the atmosphere that can, Production Guyana Limited Presently, oil is being bring an end to the gas Ryan would only repeat that with flaring as they did not only affect seabirds and (EEPGL) in 2019, shortly produced at two fields in compressor woes that the company maintained full before.” marine creatures, but also afterthestart-upoffirstoilat Guyana’s rich Stabroek plagued the Liza Destiny compliance with the EPA’s Alliance For Change climate change. In addition, LizaOne. Block, inclusive of Liza One floating, production, storage permitted parameters for Member of Parliament - itmustbenotedthatthereare The fine was increased and Liza Two. The oil and operating (FPSO) f l a r i n g w h i c h w a s K h e m r a j R a m j a t t a n alternative options available between15-7 million cubic followed up to enquire to the oil company to avoid carbon dioxide emitted hesitant to release its flaring The malfunctioning feetofgasperday whetherthis$1.8billionwill flaring, such as gas reequipment had led to two Afterpublicpressure,the injection. years of flaring which company came out saying However, Exxon has released over 200 toxic that “To date, we have made publicly made it clear that it c h e m i c a l s i n t o t h e payments on 279,537 33 ischeaperforthecompanyto atmosphere. tonnes of CO2e (Carbon flare the associated gas, Ryan said the Exxon Dioxideequivalent)flared.” rather than re-inject it into t e a m w a s a b l e t o The company’s response the wells. Various studies successfully install a new c a m e i n a f t e r conductedhaveoutlinedthat compressor from Germany environmentalists and gas flaring is a major source andwasevenopentosharing transparency advocates ofgreenhousegases(GHGs) that over US$10M in flaring called out the hiding of that accelerates global feeshadbeenpaidovertothe information as a breach to warming. Flaring releases Environmental Protection transparencybestpractices. two major GHGs – Carbon Agency(EPA). The oil company said it DioxideandMethane. from US$45 per every ton of company has always been vessel.