MP questions signing of Exxon Mobil agreement at hotel

The Member of Parliament for Builsa South Constituency in the Upper East Region, Dr Clement Apaak, has expressed wonder how a petroleum agreement can be signed in a hotel. He was apparently alluding to the Exxon Mobil deal agreed and signed by the Minister of Energy, Boakye Agyarko, on behalf of government, on Thursday. The venue was the Kempiski Hotel in Accra and the deal was completed between 8:00am and 11:00am. “I am still wondering why the signing had to be done at the Kempiski Hotel and took three hours,” the National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP said on TV3’s New Day on Saturday. He said the agreement could have been done at the Flagstaff House or the Ministry of Energy to save any costs that may have been incurred. “When we had to protect the public purse, all these count.” The deal with the American company is the first since the landmark verdict of the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) last year. Exxon Mobil, by the agreement, will acquire exploration and production rights for the Deepwater Cape Three Points (DWCTP). While the foreign firm will hold 80 per cent of interests, as per the deal, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) will hold 15 per cent. A local company is expected to hold the remaining five per cent. Despite lauding the deal, Dr Apaak said more opportunities must be given to local firms in the oil exploratory sector. By Emmanuel Kwame Amoh|3news.com|Ghana Follow @kwame_amoh]]>