Tonight, four villages in the Toledo District are anxiously waiting for Belize capital Energy to begin seismic testing in their communal lands.
Now, this narrative differs greatly from the last time the company did this in the south - when they ran into serious, sustained opposition from Satiim.
But, now - as a product of the consent order - there is an instrument called "Free, Prior and Informed Consent" - FPIC for short - where, after much paperwork and negotiations, villages can autonomously consent to oil exploration on their communal lands.
And so this weekend - on the eve of indigenous people's resistance day - the villagers of Midway, Crique Carco, Boom Creek and San Felipe signed FPIC agreements with US Capital Energy - and the government acting as a good faith go-between. PGTV provided us with some video and Jules Vasquez has the story:
In Midway they were greeted with the trumpeting blast of a conch shell - in Boom Creek, they broke bread, and in the four communities that this weekend signed Free Prior and Informed Consent agreements with US Capital Energy - there was welcome relief at the end of a long and tedious process:
Oscar Canelo, 1st Alcalde - Midway Village
"And we are so happy with U.S. Capital to put this on record that U.S. Capital, the last development that we saw was when U.S. Capital was here doing that live seismic testing. A lot of money was out. You know, people had a little cash, they fixed a little house, they bought their little motorbikes, you know, they were moving around."
"But that was the last development of cashflow that we have in this community. When they left, nothing else came after that. Nothing else."
And now US Capital Energy's Alistair King is back - and he couldn't have been more warmly welcomed:
Hon. Oscar Requena, Toledo West Rep
"So if there is potential for oil, as our friend Mr. King has said, and we take his word like what DPM said, then we must ensure that we exploit that resource and that in the process of exploiting that resource, that our people benefit, that our communities benefit."
"Just the process of going through the seismic testing is going to create, employment opportunities and economic opportunities for many of these communities who don't have employment."
Hon. Cordel Hyde, Minister of Natural Resources/Petroleum
"It's an exciting possibility if we can find oil in commercial quantities. Mr. King assures us that there is oil in commercial quantities here. He has spoken to the Gods and the Gods have told him this and he knows for sure that it's there. And we believe him because ultimately at the end of the day, if we are able to find oil in commercial quantities, it's going to be a beautiful thing for Belize."
DPM Hyde had the same message to the villagers of Boom Creek
Hon. Cordel Hyde, Minister of Natural Resources/Petroleum
"I am really, really inspired and encouraged by what this enhanced cooperation and commitment can bring forward. The experts say that there's a lot of beautiful things under the earth that can benefit a lot of people who are on top of the earth."
"Our job is to make that happen, with disagreement that can happen. If we are able to work together, if we are able to work diligently, if we are able to work maybe seven days a week and do the testing and speed up that process so that the road to discovering oil in commercial quantities is much shorter than the road we've taken to reach this agreement."
Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Min of Indigenous Affairs
"And we hope that the testing will be successful and that we can all participate in the development of our country."
And now the real work begins - which if at the end of it - no oil is found - will have been a monumental waste of time - but a precedent set - which only the courageous and cash loaded would be bold enough to follow.
The agreements were signed between Saturday and Sunday.
