Officials of Patriotic Energies & Technologies Co. Ltd say they have met the deadline for resolution of issues related to the sale of the Pointe-a-Pierre Refinery.
A media release from the company stated: "At exactly 10.07 pm last evening, Thursday, October 29, Patriotic submitted a proposal for resolution of the issues, ahead of the Prime Minister’s deadline. "
During negotiations for the sale of the refinery there had been a major challenge with respect to the offer made by Minister of Finance Colm Imbert on September 20. On September 28, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley gave the end of October as the deadline for parties to agree on a way towards final closure of the acquisition process.
Patriotic officials said on October 21 they met with the Ministerial committee in an attempt to resolve the issue and reiterated their commitment to complete the process. They agreed to submit a proposal to overcome the “stumbling block”. Patriotic subsequently met with its international team and developed the proposal for the way forward.
"Patriotic earnestly hopes that this proposal will lead to the swift completion of the acquisition process, paving the way to the reopening of the refinery in the interest of the People of Trinidad and Tobago," the company said.
Patriotic, a company owned by the Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU), was named as the preferred bidder to own and operate the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery.