Jamaica is discussing "significant" unsolicited proposals from prospective operators of the state-owned 35,000 b/d Kingston refinery, energy minister Daryl Vaz said.
The discussions will determine the government's position on the refinery's future, he said, without naming the entities involved in the discussions. State oil company Petrojam manages the unit.
A government-appointed committee recommended in 2020 that the 55-year-old facility be privatized.
The government has not yet taken a decision on the future of the refinery, "so those recommendations are still under review," Vaz told the island's parliament.
The committee that studied the operations of the refinery had rejected a government plan to upgrade the facility. It said instead private management was "the only credible opportunity" to improve its operations.
It also said the plant should be mothballed if the government cannot find investors willing to acquire or lease it.
Venezuelan outreach
Jamaica's parliament approved the government's 2019 takeover of PdV's stake in Petrojam, saying the Venezuelan firm had reneged for years on a plan to upgrade the facility and expand it to 50,000 b/d.
The PdV shares are still being held in escrow.
The escrow account was created "as Venezuela was the target of US sanctions which prohibit Jamaica from making any direct payment to Caracas," Jamaica's government said at the time. It was intended to "insulate" Jamaica from also being subject to US sanctions.
Venezuela has indicated it wants to discuss the shareholding and "we responded to that but we have not heard back," Vaz said.
Kingston is the island's only refinery and supplies about 32,500 b/d of products to the domestic market, according to official figures.
Jamaica produces no crude and the refinery processes imports from the US and Mexico to produce diesel, heavy fuel oil, kerosene, jet fuel, LPG, asphalt and gasoline. The island's demand is 70,000 b/d.
