Deputies in dark over an offer to save island millions
Wednesday 28th January 2009, 2:31PM GMT.
AN OFFER that could save the States millions on its fuel ships is on the table, the Guernsey Press can reveal today.
Earlier this month the Indian Chowgule Group, the shipping arm of which has a local subsidiary, contacted the Treasury Department with a proposal to buy at least one of the tankships the Policy Council has now secured and lease it back to the States.
It is understood that another major shipping company has also expressed an interest after it was announced that the States had bought the Vedrey Tora and Vedrey Thor for 17m. euros.
The Policy Council has consistently said the purchase of the two tankers was the only way to secure fuel supplies to Guernsey after the company that owned them, Svithoid Tankships, went into administration.
Most deputies are understood to be in the dark about the offers, despite being set to debate the purchase at the States sitting that begins today.
Advocate John Langlois is a director of the local Chowgule subsidiary. He was asked by the group’s directors to raise the question.
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It beggars belief that details of the Chowgule Group offer has not been made public.
After all it is the taxpayer who is paying.
Or, perhaps the Policy Council have some magical way of making money out of the two Vedrey(s).
The Vedrey Thor has been anchored in Liverpool since the 19th January. Before that it was anchored at Hull. In between being anchored for days at Hull and the IOW, it did go to the Baltic for a few days.
If this activity is making money for the States no doubt the prople paying the States will soon want to renegotiate.
Open government? What a joke
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Stephen John normally makes comments well worth following up on.
However, I suspect that as two companies now appear to be interested, it can only be for their own benefit and not necessarily that of the States of Guernsey.
We should check on what is being offered, but why should we provide an easy investment for a private company when we are probably better off sticking to the decision we made.
John Langlois was right when he pushed for the States purchase of Aurigny but I doubt he is right on this occassion. After all, he is now speaking on behalf of one of the companies and not of the States of Guernsey.
I personally commend the decision to purchase the two tankers and having given Deputy Lyndon Trott and some of his colleagues some stick on other leadership issues, I feel it is only right to give praise when it is due also.
Tony Webber
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Problem is Mr Webber that we don’t know what is on offer.
Only then we can assess whether the acquisition of the Vedrey(s) is a sound investment, or as sound as a pound.
The Chowgule Group offer might have be an offer we should not refuse. We should be given the chance to make up our own minds.
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