NGC pays $3.3 billion to Govt

The money was used to close the deficit gap in the national budget said Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.

“That is not earnings. That is money obtained by the sale of the TTNGL shares,” he said.

Responding to questions from members of the Opposition in the House of Representatives yesterday, Rowley said, “I am flabbergasted to receive a question like that from the other side.

“We received $3.3 billion in dividends from TTNGL. Compare that with $14 billion paid to the last Government and we cannot find what that $14 billion was spent on.” Asked also about the divestment of 40 per cent of the Trinidad Generation Unlimited (TGU), Rowley said Minister of Finance Colm Imbert is exploring the divestment and there was no agreement at this time.

Imbert will take steps to divest 40 per cent of the TGU and other assets within the 2017 fiscal year, he said.

“That work is proceeding apace and we anticipate that it would be concluded in some time to allow some capital injection into the ongoing programme.” With interested parties and proper arrangements in place, he said, Government was working towards concluding transactions so that funding from the transfer of the shares would go to the minister of finance’s account before the end of the fiscal year.

In terms of procurement, he said, “We are considering offers.

We are inviting persons who may be interested - international companies that may be working in Trinidad and Tobago.” Cabinet will then determine, based on the offers, the best options for Government.

Government will maintain majority shareholding in the company so as to be in control of the future in a certain way, he said. In addition to divesting the 40 per cent to the private sector, Rowley said nine per cent of the shareholding in the company would be made available in the form of initial public offerings to nationals, pension funds, unit trusts.

“It is the intention to sell to 49 per cent and Government maintains 51 percent in TGU. This is as transparent as it can get.

On a special fund for capital projects suggested by Opposition MP Dr Surujrattan Rambachan, Rowley said, “It is very interesting that these proposals are coming now.” He said it would have been a whole lot more useful when NGC had $16 billion in their bank which could have been used specifically for a diversification programme or new development projects. “It is a great idea. Except that those funds were spent within the confines of all kinds of things I don’t know.

“If we spend it in the health sector on medicine, we don’t have it to spend on the road building programme. If we spend it on teachers salaries, we don’t have it to spend on tourism infrastructure.” The ability to keep the capital programme going in a deficit budget, he said, “can be interpreted that we are borrowing to spend on the capital programme.”