In a sharply worded statement issued following ExxonMobil’s latest announcement on its Guyana operations, Solomon argued that while the country’s oil sector continues to generate unprecedented wealth, many Guyanese are yet to experience the transformative benefits that were promised when oil production began.
“As Guyanese listened yesterday to the announcement by ExxonMobil, of rising production and expanding investment offshore Guyana, this is where we must resist the temptation of measuring our success by barrels, platforms, and billions of dollars. That is a mistake,” Solomon said.
“The true test of this oil era is not how much wealth is extracted from beneath our waters but how much of that wealth is transformed into a better life for the people above them.”
His comments come as Guyana’s oil industry enters another phase of rapid expansion.
The commissioning of the One Guyana Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel has pushed production in the Stabroek Block beyond 900,000 barrels per day. ExxonMobil and its partners now operate four FPSOs offshore Guyana, with additional developments already approved and production expected to soon surpass one million barrels per day.
Since first oil was produced in December 2019, Guyana has become one of the fastest-growing oil-producing nations in the world. Production has increased from approximately 74,000 barrels per day in 2020 to more than 900,000 barrels per day today, fundamentally transforming the country’s economic landscape and making it one of the most significant new oil producers globally.
The growth in production has also generated unprecedented revenues. Through royalties and profit oil payments deposited into the Natural Resource Fund (NRF), Guyana received approximately US$185 million in 2020, US$608 million in 2021, US$1 billion in 2022, US$1.62 billion in 2023, and US$2.57 billion in 2024. By the end of last year, more than G$1.3 trillion had been paid into the Fund from petroleum operations.
Under Guyana’s Production Sharing Agreement, the country receives a two per cent royalty on gross production and a 50 per cent share of profit oil after ExxonMobil and its partners recover approved development and operational costs. The scale of those revenues has enabled successive national budgets to expand significantly and has financed major spending on infrastructure, housing, healthcare, education and energy projects.
Yet despite the billions flowing into the treasury, Solomon questioned whether the country is receiving the full developmental benefits of the oil boom.
“Exxon and its partners have every reason to be optimistic. Their investments are producing results. The question is whether Guyana is doing the same,” he said.
The parliamentarian argued that while government revenues have surged, many of the social and economic challenges confronting ordinary citizens remain unresolved.
“Today, even as oil revenues rise, according to international agencies 58% of Guyanese live in poverty, while 38% live on G$650 a day. Families are still burdened by high electricity costs with constant blackout. Small businesses continue to struggle with operating expenses, with the ‘ease of doing business’, not easy at all. Communities are still waiting for basic services, such as clean drinking water, that reflect where the real wealth generation goes.”
His remarks touch on one of the central debates surrounding Guyana’s oil economy: whether extraordinary economic growth is being translated into tangible improvements in quality of life.
Despite recording some of the highest economic growth rates in the world over recent years, concerns continue to be raised about the cost of living, access to healthcare, electricity reliability, public infrastructure, youth employment, and the pace at which oil wealth is reaching communities across the country.
Solomon singled out the Government’s flagship Gas-to-Energy Project, which has been promoted as a transformative initiative intended to lower electricity costs and improve competitiveness.
“The Gas-to-Energy Project, presented as a solution that would dramatically reduce electricity costs and improve competitiveness. Yet, over two years and moving from US$500 [million] to US$2B, has kept the promised relief out of reach for many citizens.”
He argued that Guyana must move beyond celebrating production milestones and begin examining how effectively petroleum revenues are being deployed.
“We must begin asking harder questions about management, value and return.”
Among the questions he raised were how much oil wealth is being converted into productive national assets and how much is being invested in sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, technology, transportation, healthcare and education.
“How much of the oil wealth is being converted into productive national assets? How much is being invested in agriculture diversity, manufacturing, technology, transport, education, healthcare and the industries that will sustain Guyana long after oil production peaks?” he asked.
The APNU parliamentarian also revisited concerns surrounding the management of the Natural Resource Fund, Guyana’s sovereign wealth fund established to receive and manage petroleum revenues.
The fund has become a major point of political contention, with the Opposition maintaining that amendments enacted by the PPP/C administration weakened safeguards and oversight mechanisms that existed under the previous APNU+AFC Government.
“These questions matter because oil is not an inheritance from our ancestors. It is a loan from our children,” Solomon stated.
“The Natural Resource Fund was created to protect that principle. It was never intended to become a convenient reservoir for unchecked withdrawals or short term political priorities as we see this government making it be.”
The parliamentarian used the statement to reaffirm APNU’s support for continued petroleum development while advocating stronger governance structures.
“This is where APNU’s vision remains clear. We support continued oil and gas development. We support investment. We support exploration and production but we also believe that the country’s resources must be managed in a manner that secures lasting national benefits.”
According to Solomon, that vision includes stronger oversight of petroleum revenues, the establishment of a Parliamentary Natural Resources Committee, greater opportunities for Guyanese workers and businesses, and policies aimed at diversifying the economy beyond petroleum.
“It means ensuring that local businesses and Guyanese workers receive meaningful opportunities, better wages, salaries and benefits. It means using oil revenues to diversify the economy rather than deepening dependence on a single sector.”
He argued that the ultimate measure of Guyana’s oil success will not be found in the profits earned by multinational corporations or the size of government budgets, but in the everyday experiences of citizens.
“Most importantly, it means recognising that the success of Guyana cannot be measured solely by the profits of oil companies or the size of government budgets. Success must be measured by the condition of our people.”
For Solomon, the benchmarks are straightforward: whether graduates can find meaningful employment at home rather than emigrating, whether pensioners can live with dignity, whether electricity becomes more affordable and reliable, and whether communities experience visible improvements in their daily lives.
As Guyana’s production moves towards the one-million-barrel-per-day milestone, Solomon said the country faces a defining test.
“Exxon’s announcement is therefore both good news and a timely reminder.”
“The good news is that Guyana’s resource base continues to grow and attract investment. The reminder is that growing revenues do not automatically produce national development. That requires leadership, discipline, vision and accountability.”
He concluded that future generations will ultimately judge Guyana’s oil era not by the number of FPSOs operating offshore or the volume of crude extracted from the Stabroek Block, but by whether the country used its resource wealth to build stronger institutions, a diversified economy and a society in which the benefits of development were broadly shared.
“They will judge us by whether we use this moment to build stronger governance structures, a stronger economy, a fairer society and a country in which every citizen shared in the blessings of its natural wealth.”
