Guyana’s Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, has refuted claims made by opposition member and former Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, that the government is wasting over US$450 million in power generation investments as it rushes towards the development of the Wales gas-to-shore project.
Patterson had lambasted the government, alleging that the gas-to-shore project would discard the multi-million dollar investments in power generation facilities across the country. He claimed that the government indicated that the Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) plants would be turned off when the 300-megawatt gas-fired power plant is completed by December 2024 and further noted that most of the four generators located in Vreed-en-Hoop on the West Bank, Canefield in Berbice, Garden of Eden on the East Bank, and Kingston Georgetown, have a useful lifespan of 25 years.
However, at today’s press conference, the Vice President dismissed Patterson’s claims that the government would have to “park” the units bought whilst still having to repay for them. He clarified that the investments would not be wasted, as the units would be used as reserves, and highlighted that the lack of reserves is a major cause of blackouts in Guyana.
“Right now we don’t have reserves that is why you have blackouts. Most utilities in the world- 75 percent of their installed capacity is reserves. So that incase you have a problem with installed capacity you can put on your reserves,” he emphasised. He further noted that some countries have spinning reserves that keep running, so incase a unit goes down, there is backup power which prevents blackouts altogether. However, according to Jagdeo, these spinning reserves are very costly.
It’s worth noting that Patterson in his criticism of the government attributed to lax management of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) as the reason for the country’s frequent blackouts. But, Jagdeo is maintaining that this is not the case, stating that, “We don’t have reserves now due to the lack of investments. So our peak demand is close to install capacity. That is why when you lose one unit you have blackout”.
