NEW PETROTRIN BOSS IS IN TOWN

THE man expected to run a privatised Petrotrin has been in Trinidad and Tobago over the past few days.

He was seen in the company of someone who looked like a top official of the State petrochemical sector.

But the Cabinet has not yet sanctioned the sale or lease of the largest State enterprise, and there is a sharp split among government ministers.

A minister said the matter is “a hot potato” being manoeuvred by Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley.

Omamofe Boyo, Executive Director of Oando Energy Resources and Deputy Group Chief Executive of Oando PLC, came to Port of Spain even amid the Cabinet rift.

Rowley is seeking to railroad Cabinet to confirm Oando PLC – one of three short-listed bidders – despite its financial and governance issues.

While there is hot debate in Cabinet, the ruling PNM is rallying support for the deal, claiming Oando has experienced “a dramatic turnaround.”

But Oando’s stocks tumbled by 25 per cent on Monday (February 24) following other share price declines and a slump in profits.

This has deepened a cash flow crisis and made investors jittery.

Claims of financial and governance irregularities have been levelled by Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The SEC sought in 2019 to bar Boyo and other Oando officials from holding senior office in the company but was blocked by Nigeria’s federal court.

The company was also previously suspended from the stock exchanges in Nigeria and Johannesburg, South Africa, for financial irregularities.

In October 2023, an Italian hydrocarbon company attempted to prosecute Boyo and others for allegedly cheating on a 2019 oil contract.

An Italian judge ruled the alleged crime did not fall within his jurisdiction.

While Oando has extensive experience in crude oil exploration, production, and marketing, the company has never operated a refinery.

Almost two decades ago, the company failed in a bid for controlling interest in a Nigerian refinery.

Rowley supports Oando over Inca Energy LLC and Cro Consortium.

Cro comprises a 50-year-old local industrial firm, a refinery operator with experience in the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America, and a transnational technology firm.

Inca, with operations in the United States and South Africa, is involved in several engineering industries, utilising modern technology.

Experts are querying whether Oando could raise the initial US $1 billion for working capital, will reinvest profits locally, and utilise T&T professionals.

They are also asking whether the company is seeking to place the Petrotrin asset on the balance sheet to improve its equity position to raise funds.

The government scrapped two previous attempts to divest Petrotrin after applicants were reportedly unable to provide financial guarantees.

An industry specialist wondered how Rowley justifies privatising Petrotrin to a company without refining experience, with a longstanding cash crisis, and a history of conflicts with regulators.