Pompeo’s visit not tied to Payara permit

Minister of Natural Resources Vickram Bharrat says that US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo’s visit this week is in no way tied to permits being processed for ExxonMobil’s Payara well and that the US oil major must meet the necessary requirements and environmental standards before any approval is granted.

And while a second draft of terms of agreement for a licence for the project should be completed around the same time that Pompeo is here, there will be no influence on that process.

Bharrat said that teams from both government and ExxonMobil will today again meet to straighten issues relating to the project as environmental matters such as flaring, water dumping along with overlapping legal terms from the Liza-1 project remain outstanding.