Wayne
Bertrand moves on
PORT SPAIN
Petroleumworldtt.com
02 24 08
After working for 30 years as a geologist, Wayne
G Bertrand, former President of Operations at state
owned Petrotrin realized that his calling in life
was to become a teacher.
Bertrand retired from Petrotrin last month on
attaining the compulsory retirement age of 60.
Reflecting
on his ambitions after he graduated from Presentation
College San Fernando, he told
Business Express, "I really wanted to be a
teacher, and that was the reason why I had joined
the staff of St. Mary's College."
He explained that he missed that chance when he
was offered a scholarship by the University of
the West Indies to study geology.
But his wish resurfaced this year when he was
appointed to head a department at UWI for students
in their final year who are reading for a degree
in Geo-Science.
"This
is a great challenge to me but I welcome the
opportunity to join the teaching fraternity,
even at this late stage."
He
said he has been involved over the last six years
in a programme with the UWI and has been
able to influence young lives in a positive fashion. "This
has been most satisfying," he said.
Since his retirement, Bertrand also has landed
a short-term contract as Advisor to Malcolm Jones,
Executive Chairman of Petrotrin.
In that position, Bertrand is expected to turn
around non-profit making sections into profitable
ventures.
For
Bertrand, his journey to excellence is far from
over. "I hope always to have the opportunity
to work with and influence the people around me," he
said.
There is the popular feeling that once you are
in an executive position frustration does not exist.
Bertrand
explained that frustration can be found at all
levels of employment. "There have been
times when I have been frustrated by the bureaucratic
process when I was first made a senior executive."
He
also disclosed that he had to face major challenges
at Petrotrin in implementing new initiatives, "but
I have always used my self-motivation and
prayers to find purpose and value in everything
I do."
He
said throughout his employment in the energy
industry he has always maintained a cordial relationship
with the Oilfields Workers Trade Union. He said, "There
were times when I had to retract some of my decisions,
but I still maintained a good relationship. We
fought across the table with union representatives,
but that never got in the way of our personal relationship."
Bertrand belongs to a group of people who could
be described as the pioneers in the development
of the oil industry. He has been around for sometime
and saw many changes in the industry.
Recalling
some of the changes, Bertrand said, "I
have seen many changes during my involvement in
the industry, including the take over of the industry
by locals and the change from oil to gas production."
Commenting
on the future of the industry Bertrand said, "There
is still a lot of oil to be extracted from the
ground, but what is needed is research
and modern techniques to extract the oil."
"We
are safe for the next ten years in our oil and
gas programmes."
When
asked about the impact PetroCaribe will have
on the refining process at Pointe a Pierre, Bertrand
said, "True enough it will affect our sales
but at present we are upgrading our plants so that
we will produce better gasolene and diesel, otherwise
we will lose our markets."
He
scoffed at the idea of building another refinery
by saying "there is no need for another refinery.
We are already refining all the oil we produce.
What we need to do is to upgrade our refining facilities."
Bertrand believes that there are a lot of people
working at Petrotrin who are not as efficient as
they should be.
"To
get over that problem, we have to introduce new
systems, and this could result in the reduction
of staff, but since we need more manpower we can
find employment for them in other areas."
Bertrand
admitted that Petrotrin does not comply with
all the requirements necessary to keep the
environment in good shape. "That is why we
are spending so much money to ensure that we keep
the environment safe."
Bertrand
would like to see the shares of Petrotrin placed
on the local stock market. "If it were,
it would allow for private shareholders to buy
shares."
Bertrand graduated from the University of the
West Indies with a Bachelors in geology and went
on to pursue a Master's degree in the same field
at the University of British Columbia, graduating
in 1972.
He
belongs to a number of professional societies
which include the Geological Society of T&T,
the American Association of Petroleum Geologists,
the Association of Professional Engineers Geologists
and Geophysicists of Alberta.
Story
by Louis B Homer from
Trinidad Express
Trinidad
Express
Wednesday, February 20th 2008
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