Governments and good business people will always hire professional consultants to help them make the best decisions possible. Therefore we are not sure how much of an issue the below story is but if LNG is as bad for JA as it seems then why are we still paying consultants? We need to see what data he has uncovered to keep JA on this LNG path which will cost the country close to a US$1billion to implement with no guarantee LNG prices won’t skyrocket like oil. In other words it’s Monday and I am recovering from jazz fest so let’s all rest off and keep waiting for something substantial from the LNG steering committee to bring some light on this situation hopefully before none of us can afford to pay for our own light.
Describing it as “quite a hefty sum”, Opposition Spokesman on Mining and Energy Phillip Paulwell has questioned the terms of reference which led the Government to be paying US$105,000 (or approximately J$8,9250,000) to an overseas consultant for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. On Saturday, the Office of the Contractor General, which is the secretariat for the National Contracts Commission, released the list of approved contracts for December 2010, among them being the engagement of Ernest Megginson by the Office of the Cabinet. Megginson has been hired to work on the country’s LNG project and is being paid the US$105,000 for three months’ service. “I would love to get further details on that, especially in light of other shortcomings with the project. That is quite an hefty sum being paid over, so I would love to see what are the terms of reference,” Paulwell told The Gleaner yesterday. However, Christopher Zacca, head of the steering committee that has been set up to lead the project, says there is nothing unusual about the sum being paid to Megginson. “This is comparable to what you would normally pay an overseas consultant,” Zacca said.
