Sol commissions multimillion-dollar service station

By Samuel Sukhnandan

Sol Guyana Incorporated commissioned a $500 million service station at Vlissengen Road, Bel Air Park, Georgetown.
Sol Guyana Inc General Manager Ken Figaro said the new service station is expected to serve Guyanese customers well. Figaro said Sol, which uses the Shell brand through its service stations network and acts as a sole distributor for Shell in the Caribbean and in Guyana, is ready to provide the best service and quality products.

Sol (Guyana) Inc on Thursday evening commissioned its new ultra-modern Shell Service Station located at Bel Air Park. In this Carl Croker photo, President Donald Ramotar assists these young ladies in cutting the ribbon to officially open the facility. Also in picture are top officials of the company and Natural Resources and Environment Minister Robert Persaud

The Sol official explained that the new service station will serve as the flagship retail outlet for the company. “We are close to fully operating our local network, which is comprised of 12 sites, 10 of which are owned by the company and are operated by retail contractors, while the others, also Shell-branded, are owned and operated by the dealers,” Figaro stated. According to him, the construction of the new service station signals Sol’s confidence in Guyana’s economy and fits the company’s strategic plan to deliver reliable services.
The company’s general manager said for Christmas with every purchase of $3000 of Shell’s V-Power gasoline and on the presentation of six coupons, customers will be eligible to receive one model car from a set of six.
Private Sector Commission (PSC) Chairman Ramesh Dookhoo congratulated the company for the investment it has made in Guyana. Dookhoo said Sol’s presence in Guyana speaks to the growing use of private automobiles, industrial equipment, and the public transportation system at large. He also took the opportunity to praise the company for its support to environmental and charitable projects, which he pointed out, has been done quietly. He congratulated Sol for its contribution to social services.
“I would like to take this opportunity to encourage Sol to have faith in Guyana and continue to invest here. Guyanese will continue to work with you, to enhance your brand here in Guyana,” Dookhoo said. He also thanked Sol on behalf of the council of the PSC for its vision in adding another asset to the city of Georgetown that will further raise the bar in customer service and whose scientifically proven products will enhance equipment.

The flagship Sol (Shell branded) Service Station located at Vlissengen Road, Bel Air Park, Georgetown

President Donald Ramotar gave the feature address at the commissioning ceremony and congratulated the Sol Group. Ramotar believes that the new service station is the most modern of all stations in Guyana. The president said it is very special for him to witness the commissioning of the new Sol Service Station after coming out of a campaign where he focused much attention on modernising Guyana. He, therefore, believes that the service station is a step in that direction.
The head of state also believes that Sol has raised the bar in setting standards for improved service in this country. He emphasised the fact that the petroleum industry is very important to Guyana, even though the country at the moment does not produce petroleum.
“Petroleum fuel is the main energy that we have in our country. It is the single largest expense that we have on our importation bill,” Ramotar stated. Guyana spent some US$394 million on importing fuel last year and this year could spend US$450 million.
He said this shows that Guyana’s economy is on the move, as the number of vehicles have increased tremendously generally reflecting the dynamism that has developed in society. “Even though, we are investing heavily now on alternative energy, petroleum will remain very important for us in the foreseeable future…We also see petroleum will be important for certain sectors of our economy. I envisage that mining will be a very important growth pole for the development of Guyana,” he emphasised.
Ramotar stated that mining is already making a huge contribution to the development of Guyana and the sector is consuming a lot of petroleum. He believes that there will be an increase in the use of petroleum, which augurs well for businesses like Sol Guyana and others that sell petroleum.
Meanwhile, Ramotar said he also remains hopeful that soon Guyana will be able to join the group of countries producing oil and gas around the world. “The Repsol rig has arrived in Guyana and is stationed offshore and will begin to drill soon. It will be here for at least six months, by then I hope that we will be hitting oil…” This, he said, will lead to major development, which will help Guyana to create different industries and make various products such as lubricants and fertilisers.
The head of state assured the gathering that government will soon be preparing the human capital to meet the challenges that are ahead when Guyana finds oil. Ramotar said he is pleased that once such a discovery is made, jobs will be created for many skilled and unskilled Guyanese. This will help to lift the quality of life in Guyana. However, he cautioned against placing too much emphasis on oil, and noted that other emerging industries will not be neglected.
He closed by saying that the promises set out in the 2011 agenda for a greater development will be delivered to the Guyanese people.