00:00with escalating geopolitical instability choking traditional trade routes in the middle east
00:05the west is turning its eyes toward the southern caribbean for tnt a burgeoning
00:11regional energy cluster presents a major strategic pivot point so says chairman of the confederation
00:17of regional business chambers vivek charan highlighting the instability surrounding the
00:22strait of hummus in this hemisphere surin guiana venezuela and i would have to say ourselves in
00:29trinidad and tobago the energy cluster that that we represent becomes increasingly important and of
00:36strategic national interest to the larger developed countries around us he says amid growing optimism
00:43surrounding cross-border gas arrangements with venezuela a chronic shortage of u.s dollars
00:49continues to squeeze the domestic economy and the issue with the u.s dollar is the expectation
00:55versus the reality what is the expectation in the short term when people begin to hear
01:01you know u.s i mean gas coming in oil coming in the expectation is that credit card limits may
01:09begin to
01:09creep up the expectation is that this uh this drought of u.s as it were the shortage of u
01:17.s that many of
01:17businesses are feeling particularly smes is we going to is going to ease charan states that major
01:24commercial conglomerates continue to open massive new shopping complexes but on the other hand traditional
01:30large retail outlets are collapsing he says long-term economic survival requires urgent diversification
01:37but small business groups continue to complain about being actively starved of capital including u.s
01:43currency by financial institutions it's easier for you to get a loan to buy a car to get a million
01:50dollars to buy a car to get 700 000 to buy a car than it is to open a business
01:55um on top of that
01:58we have the price of real estate the latter a requirement in certain aspects of the diversification
02:06process chain when we're talking about warehouses we're talking about 30 to 50 000 a month
02:13many of them those that offer rent don't have 220 volts three-phase electricity 330 volts so the
02:21government does need to assist by you know determining and assisting in clearing the path to diversification
02:31particularly for smes the business community is now calling for concrete legally binding policy
02:37intervention from the state to clear these hurdles before the country's next energy windfall
02:43passes them by alicia boucher tv6 news
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