By Meredith Arnold McIntyre

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Nov. 28, 2023: The Guyanese economy continues to grow very rapidly, driven by the booming oil sector and supported by the government’s modernization plans. GDP continues to expand at an unprecedented rate following growth of 62.3 percent in 2022 (the highest in the world) economic growth is expected to be 38 percent in 2023.

Oil production continues to expand rapidly with the coming on stream of a third oil field, while accelerated implementation of a public investment program is supporting strong growth in the non-oil sector. The program is targeted at critical development needs and vital to strengthening economic capacity including transportation, housing, and flood management infrastructure, and raising human capital.

The latter objective of raising human capital is vital to achieving stronger long-term, sustainable growth. The presence of significant skills gaps that could hinder growth and economic transformation has been highlighted by policymakers. The other facet of the challenge is skills mismatches in the labor market where there are workers seeking employment but do not have the skills demanded in the labor market. Taken together this suggests a significant shortage of the labor skills required and recent estimates by public officials put the shortage at about 100,000 persons. Skilled labor shortages have been identified in technical skills – welders, machinists, heavy equipment operators and a range of technical skills needed in the oil industry.

In addition, as the world becomes increasingly digital Guyana like many developing countries faces the challenge of increasing the supply of skilled workers with digital skills. There is a growing need to produce skilled workers with digital skills to support an expanding service sector and the diversification of the economy, reducing the dependence on the rapidly expanding oil sector.  The note looks at the core digital skills Guyana will need to support the process of economic transformation and diversification.

To support the drive for increased digitalization Guyana must significantly expand internet access. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) estimated in 2021 that only 17 percent of the population had internet access. The low level of internet penetration is  limiting access to online education and digital skills training. Increasing broadband access and internet penetration is an important component of Government’s strategy to support the transformation process.

It is well established that digitalization increases economic efficiency, reduces transactions costs, and increases competitiveness. The Government is preparing and implementing a variety of reforms to increase digitalization of the economy and to boost labor productivity e.g., single window processing of permits, digital ID and digital banking records.

As Guyana pursues an economic transformation strategy what are the core digital skills needed to support digitization and economic transformation? The core digital skills needed to support the development of a modern economy with an efficient services sector are a combination of “hard” and “soft” skills.The “hard” skills include: (i) Online or internet-based research. This requires setting up methods of accumulating data and these include customer surveys, online interviews and metric data gathering. (ii) Social media management. This means establishing methods/processes to gather information from social media audiences and using the information to develop strategies for target audiences, for example, critical in marketing goods/services by companies or promotion of government programs to increase participation. (iii) Data and spreadsheet management. This enhances vital quantitative skills and includes managing databases and spreadsheet software to organize the data ensuring it is easily understood with a wide variety of audiences. (iv) Enhancing digital threat awareness or the risks of using digital devices. This is the area of cyber security that is of growing importance as digitization expands across the world. Cybersecurity training involves acquiring the tools to not only be aware of the digital threats but to protect the individual and the organization. For example, hacking, phishing, privacy violations, and cyberbullying.  (v) Desktop publishing. This is the range of core digital skills needed to ensure Guyana can supply the skilled workers needed to support economic transformation including the economic diversification needed long-term to reduce the dependence on the rapidly expanding oil sector.

In the oil industry digital skills have an increasingly important role to play. A global survey of by Statista[1] found that respondents identified data analytics (60,percent of the respondents) and cyber security (57 percent) as the two most critical digital skills for the oil and gas industry. Other key digital skills identified included engineering (38 percent), data science (37 percent), digital literacy (28 percent) and digital engineering (28 percent). Taken together these skills were seen as crucial to securing the future success of their companies.

Guyana’s government has identified digital skills training as a priority in the program to close skills gaps. Government has clearly stated its intention to pursue a variety of digital literacy initiatives and the private sector can play a key role by investing in upgrading/developing digital skills in the workforce.  Importantly, underpinning these “hard skills” is knowledge of key software in word processing, spreadsheets, and databases.  For example, word processing (Microsoft word, google docs), spreadsheets (Microsoft excel, google sheets, Apple numbers) and database software (Microsoft SQL server, Oracle DBMS).

Developing core digital skills while necessary is not sufficient to enhance the skills of the workers needed for the current economic transformation. The “hard skills” need to be complemented by training in and knowledge of “soft skills”. What are the soft skills?These include (i) Teamwork and collaboration. Working in teams and effective collaboration is increasingly a core part of the modern organization in the public and private sectors. (ii) Interpersonal skills and communication. This is needed in all forms of communication – oral, written, non-verbal and importantly, listening, remains a vital skill for working effectively in a modern organization. (iii) Critical thinking. In the era of fake news, social media bubbles, information overload skilled workers operating in the digital space will need the skill of critical thinking. (iv) emotional intelligence is another soft skill modern organizations in the public and private sectors need to train workers.

Finally, developing digital skills is going to require collaboration between the public and private sectors and cannot be seen exclusively as a function of the state. Businesses will need to invest resources in the digital training of their workforce and government in designing and developing digital skills development programs will need close collaboration with the private sector to identify the sectors/industries where the digital skills shortages are acute. Typically, training staff via online courses with international certification is a common method for private companies. Private sector inputs in training programs are critical to aligning the programs with the needs of the economy as they evolve over time.

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Dr. Meredith Arnold McIntyre has been an economist for over 30 years. He has worked in a variety of Caribbean regional institutions including the Caribbean Development Bank, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, and the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery in the 1990s. Dr. McIntyre joined the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in February 2001 and worked on countries in Africa and the Caribbean including leading IMF country team missions to Guyana. Dr. McIntyre has published a book and a variety of articles on issues in macroeconomic and trade policy in small states. He is currently an Associate, Manchester Trade Ltd and a Fellow with the Caribbean Policy Consortium. 

By Meredith Arnold McIntyre

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Nov. 28, 2023: The Guyanese economy continues to grow very rapidly, driven by the booming oil sector and supported by the government’s modernization plans. GDP continues to expand at an unprecedented rate following growth of 62.3 percent in 2022 (the highest in the world) economic growth is expected to be 38 percent in 2023.

Oil production continues to expand rapidly with the coming on stream of a third oil field, while accelerated implementation of a public investment program is supporting strong growth in the non-oil sector. The program is targeted at critical development needs and vital to strengthening economic capacity including transportation, housing, and flood management infrastructure, and raising human capital.

The latter objective of raising human capital is vital to achieving stronger long-term, sustainable growth. The presence of significant skills gaps that could hinder growth and economic transformation has been highlighted by policymakers. The other facet of the challenge is skills mismatches in the labor market where there are workers seeking employment but do not have the skills demanded in the labor market. Taken together this suggests a significant shortage of the labor skills required and recent estimates by public officials put the shortage at about 100,000 persons. Skilled labor shortages have been identified in technical skills – welders, machinists, heavy equipment operators and a range of technical skills needed in the oil industry.

In addition, as the world becomes increasingly digital Guyana like many developing countries faces the challenge of increasing the supply of skilled workers with digital skills. There is a growing need to produce skilled workers with digital skills to support an expanding service sector and the diversification of the economy, reducing the dependence on the rapidly expanding oil sector.  The note looks at the core digital skills Guyana will need to support the process of economic transformation and diversification.

To support the drive for increased digitalization Guyana must significantly expand internet access. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) estimated in 2021 that only 17 percent of the population had internet access. The low level of internet penetration is  limiting access to online education and digital skills training. Increasing broadband access and internet penetration is an important component of Government’s strategy to support the transformation process.

It is well established that digitalization increases economic efficiency, reduces transactions costs, and increases competitiveness. The Government is preparing and implementing a variety of reforms to increase digitalization of the economy and to boost labor productivity e.g., single window processing of permits, digital ID and digital banking records.

As Guyana pursues an economic transformation strategy what are the core digital skills needed to support digitization and economic transformation? The core digital skills needed to support the development of a modern economy with an efficient services sector are a combination of “hard” and “soft” skills.The “hard” skills include: (i) Online or internet-based research. This requires setting up methods of accumulating data and these include customer surveys, online interviews and metric data gathering. (ii) Social media management. This means establishing methods/processes to gather information from social media audiences and using the information to develop strategies for target audiences, for example, critical in marketing goods/services by companies or promotion of government programs to increase participation. (iii) Data and spreadsheet management. This enhances vital quantitative skills and includes managing databases and spreadsheet software to organize the data ensuring it is easily understood with a wide variety of audiences. (iv) Enhancing digital threat awareness or the risks of using digital devices. This is the area of cyber security that is of growing importance as digitization expands across the world. Cybersecurity training involves acquiring the tools to not only be aware of the digital threats but to protect the individual and the organization. For example, hacking, phishing, privacy violations, and cyberbullying.  (v) Desktop publishing. This is the range of core digital skills needed to ensure Guyana can supply the skilled workers needed to support economic transformation including the economic diversification needed long-term to reduce the dependence on the rapidly expanding oil sector.

In the oil industry digital skills have an increasingly important role to play. A global survey of by Statista[1] found that respondents identified data analytics (60,percent of the respondents) and cyber security (57 percent) as the two most critical digital skills for the oil and gas industry. Other key digital skills identified included engineering (38 percent), data science (37 percent), digital literacy (28 percent) and digital engineering (28 percent). Taken together these skills were seen as crucial to securing the future success of their companies.

Guyana’s government has identified digital skills training as a priority in the program to close skills gaps. Government has clearly stated its intention to pursue a variety of digital literacy initiatives and the private sector can play a key role by investing in upgrading/developing digital skills in the workforce.  Importantly, underpinning these “hard skills” is knowledge of key software in word processing, spreadsheets, and databases.  For example, word processing (Microsoft word, google docs), spreadsheets (Microsoft excel, google sheets, Apple numbers) and database software (Microsoft SQL server, Oracle DBMS).

Developing core digital skills while necessary is not sufficient to enhance the skills of the workers needed for the current economic transformation. The “hard skills” need to be complemented by training in and knowledge of “soft skills”. What are the soft skills?These include (i) Teamwork and collaboration. Working in teams and effective collaboration is increasingly a core part of the modern organization in the public and private sectors. (ii) Interpersonal skills and communication. This is needed in all forms of communication – oral, written, non-verbal and importantly, listening, remains a vital skill for working effectively in a modern organization. (iii) Critical thinking. In the era of fake news, social media bubbles, information overload skilled workers operating in the digital space will need the skill of critical thinking. (iv) emotional intelligence is another soft skill modern organizations in the public and private sectors need to train workers.

Finally, developing digital skills is going to require collaboration between the public and private sectors and cannot be seen exclusively as a function of the state. Businesses will need to invest resources in the digital training of their workforce and government in designing and developing digital skills development programs will need close collaboration with the private sector to identify the sectors/industries where the digital skills shortages are acute. Typically, training staff via online courses with international certification is a common method for private companies. Private sector inputs in training programs are critical to aligning the programs with the needs of the economy as they evolve over time.

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Dr. Meredith Arnold McIntyre has been an economist for over 30 years. He has worked in a variety of Caribbean regional institutions including the Caribbean Development Bank, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, and the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery in the 1990s. Dr. McIntyre joined the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in February 2001 and worked on countries in Africa and the Caribbean including leading IMF country team missions to Guyana. Dr. McIntyre has published a book and a variety of articles on issues in macroeconomic and trade policy in small states. He is currently an Associate, Manchester Trade Ltd and a Fellow with the Caribbean Policy Consortium. 

By Arthur Deakin

News Americas, WASHINGTON, D.C., Tues. Nov., 21, 2023: The recent merging of oil and gas companies in the U.S. indicate that energy majors see a long-term future for specific hydrocarbons in the energy transition. Chevron’s announcement of their US$53 billion all stock acquisition of Hess, and ExxonMobil’s US$59 billion merger with Pioneer Natural Resources, is likely the beginning of a wider industry consolidation in which oil majors target independent producers operating in relatively stable jurisdictions with proven light crude reserves, low breakeven costs, and flexible oil supply (i.e., shale wells that can start producing quickly when oil prices are high). Oil majors will continue to prioritize assets that generate significant free cash flows so they can continue paying large dividends to shareholders.

High cost of capital make greenfield assets hard to finance

Financing greenfield energy assets in emerging markets has become extremely challenging with the rise of interest rates. Hydrocarbon assets, which most investors are shying away from, and low carbon technologies, some of which do not yet have proven paths to profitability, are struggling to attract investments in developing markets as the risk-return is simply unjustifiable in the current financial environment. Outright acquisitions and mergers, however, have become more appealing, and none more so than the Stabroek Block in Guyana. The biggest discovery in the last decade has an estimated 11 billion barrels of recoverable oil equivalent, with potential to grow even more in the future.  This is a multi-decade production play, and it signals Chevron’s commitment to a long-term hydrocarbon strategy in the Americas.

For years, Hess has known they’ve struck the jackpot with Guyana, reflected by the upbeat mood internally at the company.  They’ve been seeking a large payday for quite some time—well deservedly so, as Guyana’s Stabroek Block has been praised as the best oil find in recent times. In addition to its resource potential, the ExxonMobil-operated block offers highly competitive breakeven costs ranging from $25 to $35 per barrel across producing projects. It is located offshore, where there tends to be less direct impact on communities than onshore drilling, and it also operates under a favorable production sharing agreement with attractive fiscal terms.

Image 1: Breakeven costs

Five major implications for Guyana

The Chevron-Hess deal will have five major implications for the Guyanese economy, all of which are likely to lead to long-term reverberations for the local oil and gas sector:  

An accelerated exploration of the Stabroek block

ExxonMobil’s $63 billion dollars in free cash flow in 2022 makes it one of the most well-capitalized oil and gas companies in the world. The speed of their ramp up in Guyana has been unprecedented, both in terms of time to market and successfully drilled wells. However, with another oil major joining the Stabroek consortium, it is likely that the 10 to 12 wells planned for 2024, and the 35-well exploration campaign announced through 2028, will actually exceed the original numbers.

An increase in production estimates for existing wells

While the Stabroek consortium already has one of the most, if not the most, competent, and technical team in the oil and gas industry with ExxonMobil at the helm, there are technological advances that Chevron could bring to the table that could increase production estimates for Guyana (upwards from the 1.2mn projected for 2027). Chevron CEO Mike Wirth discussed their collaboration with AI juggernaut OpenAI noting “We’ve been working with OpenAI for multiple years now on technologies that could work in our industry,” Wirth said. He noted oil giants generate immense datasets on geological characteristics and more. Often times, these innovative technologies are siloed inside companies, with Chevron already suggesting that they will introduce new technical capabilities to the Bakken assets owned by Hess.

Image 2: Oil production

A more competitive oil and gas sector

Although Exxon will still be calling the shots as the lead operator of the Stabroek consortium, the presence of another American oil major will lead to more collaborative decision making behind closed doors. Chevron will also now be part of the bid made in the recent oil tender by Exxon, Hess and CNOOC, pacifying some of the government’s claims that ExxonMobil is the only game in town. 

Greater Chinese influence outside of the oil & gas sector

Although the third partner in the Stabroek consortium is Chinese (CNOOC), the state-owned oil company has remained in the background during the last eight years of oil development in Guyana. Now, with the presence of two of the largest American oil majors in the consortium, CNOOC’s influence is likely to diminish. In turn, the Chinese government will increase its presence in surrounding sectors such as mining, healthcare, renewable power, and road infrastructure.

Greater pressure from the government and the people

With more resources, comes greater responsibility. The Guyanese government will likely highlight this acquisition to show that interest in Guyana remains hot, using the momentum to sign production sharing agreements that are less beneficial for oil companies in the most recent oil auction. The Guyanese people will also be more inclined to see what they can get out of a new major company coming into the country, both in terms of jobs and greater concessions. Despite the Wall Street Journal recently reporting that Guyana is booming, the reporting also raised questions on how the material improvement is flowing to ordinary Guyanese. It is expected that there will be more public pressure for improved living conditions in Guyana.  

Chevron is bullet-proofing their portfolio against international turmoil

Although Hess’ 30% participation in the Stabroek consortium was the main reason behind Chevron’s acquisition, Hess also produces 190,000 barrels per day in the Bakken Shale Play where it owns 465,000 acres of land. The Bakken formation is both more mature and smaller than the Permian basin, signaling less room for growth, but the abundance of land means Chevron could drill new wells in new locations as old wells mature. This flexibility, during a time of geopolitical turmoil, is exactly what Chevron is looking for as it seeks to bullet-proof its portfolio against unstable regimes and international conflicts.

Chevron also announced that the Bakken asset will provide a constant level of production, and strong cash flows, for many years to come. In fact, if the number of rigs remain constant, at four, Chevron estimates that the Bakken acquisition will have at least 15 years of inventory. Although the Bakken has high half-cycle breakeven costs, at U$58 per barrel, Chevron’s resources means that it faces less pressure to stick to modest production increases like many other shale producers. Its deep pockets, and ability to keep providing returns to shareholders, means that Chevron can afford to take riskier bets.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Arthur Deakin is the Director of the Energy Practice at AMI (Americas Market Intelligence). Through market research and strategic analysis, he helps companies expand into Guyana and the wider Latin American region. In the past ten years, AMI has helped companies understand the Guyanese market, navigate Guyana’s local content legislation, execute pre- and post-acquisition due diligence and conduct competitive analysis on key players in the country.

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News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Thurs. Nov. 16, 2023: Hard Beat Communications, the Award Winning, Multicultural Digital Ad & PR Agency, today announced its recognition as a 2023 Global Award and 2023 Clutch Champion winner.

Honorees are selected based on their industry expertise and ability to deliver, scores that are calculated based on the client feedback from thousands of reviews published on Clutch. For the sixth consecutive year, Clutch has honored its top B2B companies with the Global Award designation.

Hard Beat Communications executives say they are honored to be recognized as a 2023 Fall Clutch Global Award as well as a 2023 Fall Clutch Champion winner.

“This award is a testament to the excellent client work we have delivered this year as recognized through the voice of our customers in their reviews on Clutch,” said Hard Beat Communications founder, Felicia J. Persaud. “We’re proud to be recognized for global content, creation and distribution as well as a leader and a champion on a global scale for multicultural digital advertising and PR agency services.”

Clutch Global Awards showcases the very best in the B2B services industry worldwide.

“We are thrilled to showcase the incredible success of leading companies worldwide on our platform,” said Sonny Ganguly, Clutch CEO. “Their dedication to delivering outstanding services has not only contributed to their own success but has also empowered countless clients to thrive. We aim to highlight this year’s industry frontrunners and facilitate connections for Clutch users seeking top-notch services tailored to their specific needs.”

View our recent work and reviews on our Clutch profile HERE

ABOUT HARD BEAT

Hard Beat Communications is an award-winning, Caribbean owned, multicultural, woman owned full-service business solutions agency that offers companies all the tools they need to run and grow their business from one place via packaged offerings or subscriptions.  Hard Beat provides our clients with all the marketing tools they need for the 21st century – to grow their bottom line.

ABOUT CLUTCH
Clutch empowers better business decisions as the leading global marketplace of B2B service providers. More than 1 million business leaders start at Clutch each month to read in-depth client interviews and discover trusted agency partners to meet their business needs. Clutch has been honored for the past 6 consecutive years as an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing company and by the Washington Business Journal as one of the 50 fastest growing private companies in the DC metro area for 2023.

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Weds. Nov. 1, 2023: Team Invest Caribbean, in collaboration with the Caribbean Export Development Agency, recently guided a carefully selected group of eight Caribbean developers through the process of presenting their projects to investors at the Caribbean Investment Forum, CIF 2023, held at the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island in The Bahamas. These projects ranged in scale from USD 500,000 to USD 15 million.

As the global private sector investment agency for the Caribbean, the ICN team spent the last six weeks working closely with developers hailing from CARICOM nations of The Bahamas, Grenada, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, and Barbados. The ICN team provided support in crafting investor pitch decks, preparing investor financial projections, and conducting training sessions to equip these developers with the skills to effectively present and pitch their projects to a panel of investors at CIF 2023.

This forum was presented by the Caribbean Export Development Agency, with the collaboration of the Government of the Bahamas, the European Union, the Caribbean Development Bank, and CARICOM, and it took place from October 23rd to 25th in Nassau.

The projects featured were in the sectors of agri-tech, ICT, and renewable energy. They were as follows:

Doctor on Call – An ICT startup project based in Jamaica.

Xhuma – An existing ICT project in Trinidad & Tobago.

Prosperina – A startup agri-tech project originating in The Bahamas.

Ecoaid – A startup agri-tech and renewable energy project from Jamaica.

Grenada Grows – A startup agri-tech and renewable energy project based in Grenada.

Chick Inn – A startup agriculture project situated in Grenada.

Eco Energy – A startup renewable energy project in The Bahamas.

Portland/Pavana Energy – A renewable energy project located in Barbados.

Felicia J. Persaud, CEO of ICN, expressed the agency’s enthusiasm at being part of the team of CIF 2023 and in helping to fulfil its commitment to contributing to the vision of a “Bold New Caribbean” by showcasing the diverse investment opportunities available across the region. She also expressed delight in the interest received by several of the developers from investors at CIF 2023.