Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d), Mark Phillips today reaffirmed Government’s commitment to bridging the energy gap and providing reliable and efficient electricity to all Guyanese.
He made the statement as he witnessed the signing of the contract for the construction of a GY$362.4M, 0.686 Megawatt Solar Farm in Mahdia, Region Eight, which will benefit over 2,884 residents. The new 686kWp farm will be constructed on 1.7 acres of land.
According to the Prime Minister, “This is an important project for us because we talk about bridging the digital divide. As a government, we are committed to also bridging the energy divide. We are committed to bringing development to the Hinterland of Guyana.”
The project, funded by the Inter-American Development Bank through the Energy Matrix Diversification and Strengthening of the Department of Energy (EMISDE) program, aligns with the LCDS 2030 agenda, which saw the installation of solar farms at Lethem and Bartica, 28 solar mini-grids, and 29 off-grid locations totalling 3.415MW of installed capacity coming on stream.
Prime Minister Phillips highlighted that it is also notable that the implementation of the project will be done by a local contractor.
“Another important aspect of the project is that the contractor is a local contractor. So this is good for Guyana. The skill to be utilised on this project by a Guyanese firm augurs well for us in terms of development in capacity.”
He also used the opportunity to deliver a charge to the contractor stating that the project must be delivered in a timely manner.
Singing the contract were Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), Dr Mahender Sharma, General Manager of Standby Power Engineering Company (SPECOM) Mr Aundrea Cambridge, and Permanent Secretary of the Office of the Prime Minister, Derrick Cummings.
RENEWABLE ENERGY AND MAHDIA
The Mahdia solar PV project was awarded to Standby Power Engineering Company (SPECOM) following an open tender process and funded by a loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), with Guyana Energy Agency being responsible for project implementation.
The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2023 as the Government remains committed to realising the objectives and targets of the Low Carbon Development Strategy, particularly investing in clean energy to stimulate future growth and providing affordable, stable, and reliable energy to benefit both households and businesses.
In addition to offsetting 30-65% or more of the annual electricity supply to the Mahdia mini-grid, the Solar Farm would be able to supply electricity to the community for more than two hours per day without the use of diesel generators.
