NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Prime Minister Philip Davis is “engaging with experts” to determine his administration’s position on oil drilling going forward, according to Press Secretary Clint Watson.
Watson advised the Prime Minister has engaged the experts to determine whether his position on the matter will change or remain the same, during the first Office of the Prime Minister press briefing.
While in opposition, Davis affirmed his support for oil drilling under the caveat it is done in an “environmentally friendly” manner.
He previously told Eyewitness News that he still supports the agreement struck with the Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) now Challenger Energy to exploit the natural resource for the benefit of the Bahamian people — if it is found to exist in commercial quantities.
He also previously acknowledged that his law firm represented BPC for a brief period but said he severed ties due to what he perceived might be a conflict of interest well before the 2007 general election.
The company is now focused on renewing the licenses into a third, three-year exploration period and securing a partner — ideally a large industry player — to provide expertise and capital for the next phase of activity.
The company’s Perseverance #1 well represented the first exploratory drilling in The Bahamas since the mid-1980s and the first test of any prospect located in deeper waters off the shallower water carbonate banks. Drilling concluded in February of this year without incident and no discovery of commercial quantities of oil.
Watson said: “What the Prime Minister has been doing is engaging the Ministry of the Environment, the experts, to talk about where we are, what is required from us internationally, and if we do this would be the result of it.
“What he is doing right now is, he is talking to the experts getting the best analysis, best advice, and based on that he will formulate a policy that will go before Cabinet and come to Parliament. What he is doing right now is talking to the experts in the field, finding out what is the best for The Bahamas, if we do this how will we do it in a barometer that is safe and how will it benefit the Bahamian people. You will hear about that very soon.”
