Government Targets Investment with Oil and Gas Strategy

Prime Minister Briceño says his administration remains committed to the responsible development of Belize’s oil and gas sector, while acknowledging that the country’s reserves are modest by global standards. As part of that strategy, the government has appointed David Morales as Special Envoy for Oil and Gas, a three-year post aimed at attracting investment and exploring new opportunities within the industry. With tens of millions of dollars already committed to new exploration efforts by investors, Prime Minister Briceño says Morales’ appointment is about leveraging experience and industry connections, as the government continues to assess Belize’s energy potential.

 

Prime Minister John Briceño

“We’ve always been pursuing oil. When I was the minister of natural resources, there’s always the feeling that there are, there is there. We do have some oil, not in quantities like Guyana, unfortunately, but we believe that we still have small pools of maybe several million gallons – barrel sorry at a time The one that we found out of Spanish Lookout, they did about between ten and twelve million barrels was the estimate. Right now the same team from BNE, Susan Morris is her name – Susan just messaged me just last week wanting to meet with me. She was leaving the country. I was busy. They have now raised, I think fifty million dollars to be able to do two more wells in that area. They believe that they found another area where they confirm oil. There are some areas, for instance, up in the north between Corozal and Orange Walk District – by behind Blue Creek in that area. Down South, there are different areas where we believe that we have small pools. Now what Mr. Morales came to us; he made an offer. He worked for BNE. He has a degree in oil, in the oil industry. He knows several investors that are still interested and he offered himself that if a special envoy then he has something to be able to knock on doors and open doors and say hey come to Belize we have opportunities. He does not get paid anything. He’s, or it’s something that he’s offering to use his experience over the years. He believe he can help us.”