Opinion
Play of time for US Energy company
Midnight Power Agreement with USA – Has anyone thought about the time difference?
There is much talk about the signing of this agreement in Colombo at midnight, rather than considering the favourability or otherwise of its terms and conditions to the future of the country and its people. New Fortress Energy Inc. is an American Company with its registered office at 111 West 19th Street, New York, and incorporated on June 06, 2018. Its main line of business is oil and gas.
If one looks at it intelligently, it could be seen that the Authorities didn’t wait till the nation went to sleep to sign that agreement, as it is observed that many undesirable things have taken place even during day time too! But one of the reasons to do so could have been the time difference between the two countries. Since New York is west of Colombo, time zone-wise, it is nine and half hours behind Colombo; which means that when it is 12.00 midnight in Colombo, it will be 2.30 pm (14.30 hours) on the same day in NY. As the Colombo office hours are from 9.00 am to 4.00 pm, it would be seen that during this whole period the NY offices will remain closed, as the corresponding time would be 11.30 pm on the previous day to 6.30 am on the same day. It is said that a team of officers of the company arrived in Colombo to sign the agreement and their arrival and departure schedules also would have been a consideration when fixing the time. Further, if a need arose to consult their head office to clarify any last-minute alterations or additions, such consultations would become possible only during the time when their head office remains open in NY. When the agreement was signed at midnight in Colombo, NY time was 2.30 pm.
In any case, even in a land sale it is the buyer who decides (maybe after consulting astrologers) when and where to sign the deed and not the seller! People may have to wait till the agreement is presented in the Parliament to see its merits and demerits, but even then what can they do except for being silent spectators!
S. WIJESINGHE