MLA McLean never contacted on East End fuel terminal

East End MLA Arden McLean said Tuesday that he had been entirely left out of discussions regarding a government proposal to install a fuel terminal facility in his district. 

“I first learned about this on Monday in your paper,” Mr. McLean said. “They [referring to the government] have not even discussed this with me.”  

A joint development agreement signed between the government and a Texas-based energy company seeks to eventually shutter Cayman’s current bulk fuel storage facility in Jackson Point, off South Church Street, and construct a new one in East End, according a three-page memorandum signed by government officials and Navasota Clean Energy LLC. 

The intention of the proposal is to “establish a fully integrated development plan and structure such that they might attract one or more [fuel] terminal companies” that are interested in fuel supply and transshipment operations. 

Under the agreement, the Cayman Islands government undertakes to: “Work with Navasota on potential sites on the East End of Grand Cayman and provide preferred rights of way for [a] delivery pipeline from East End to [the] current pipeline system.” 

Planning Minister Kurt Tibbetts said last week that no final decisions had been taken on the matter and that a meeting has been scheduled between government and Navasota officials in September to further discuss the proposal.  

Mr. McLean said he could not provide a “political position” on the proposal, but was fairly convinced East End residents would not support such a move by government. A similar plan under the last government led to protest marches in the eastern districts.  

What is being discussed as part of the joint development agreement bears some resemblance to a 2010 proposal by local businessman Joe Imparato that would have included a hydrocarbon (fuel) storage facility in East End as part of a larger seaport development. 

However, Mr. McLean said he believes the window of opportunity for that specific plan has closed. He said the previous location proposed by Mr. Imparato for the hydrocarbon facility was now too close to the newly constructed Health City Cayman Islands.  

Mr. McLean said it was uncertain what property would be considered, but that any location selected would raise public health and safety issues. 

“If we’re going to rezone East End to have an industrial area, then somebody is making a mistake,” Mr. McLean said. “Having been a marine engineer all my life, I just don’t see how we’re going to mitigate the dangers of getting fuel from East End into George Town where the bulk consumption is at. 

“If you [transfer the fuel] by pipelines, then we’re going to have to go along the East West Arterial [road] and those roads go through communities. If we put it by trucks to transport that fuel into George Town, we’re going to have an untold number of trucks to transport that.”  

Mr. McLean said he believes the government’s arguments in favor of the fuel pipelines would include the fact that petrol is transported from Canada to the U.S. in this same fashion, over a much longer distance than is contemplated on Grand Cayman.  

“But there are vast expanses of undeveloped properties that the pipeline runs across and, incidentally, those are above ground,” he said. “I just can’t believe government is thinking about this.”  

Government officials previously have discussed the need to move the current Jackson Point fuel terminal. In June, Planning Minister Tibbetts made public proposals to relocate the facility, but he did not name a district where they would be moved.  

Mr. Tibbetts said there are numerous public benefits to such a facility.  

“If something like this becomes feasible, it is very likely that Caribbean Utilities Company and other local entities could get their fuel much cheaper than they’re getting it now,” he said. “It could also be a means by which more competition is brought to bear in the retail fuel sector, but all of these things are what we are going to be examining.”