Vice President, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo announced on Thursday that Guyana will move forward with its second gas project, even though the nation’s comprehensive gas strategy is still to be completed.
The project, spearheaded by United States (US)- based Fulcrum LNG, will see the development of a state-of-the-art natural gas processing facility to expand the country’s gas infrastructure.
Speaking at his press conference last week, Jagdeo said, “We’re still working on it.” He added, “But as you’ve seen, we’ve moved forward with the project that we wanted to check the viability for. We’ve moved forward on that, but again, the gas strategy is a clear one.”
He emphasized that the primary goal of the gas strategy is to determine the best ways to monetize Guyana’s associated gas. Jagdeo explained, “Key elements of the gas strategy would have been how we monetize the gas, the associated gas that we’re talking about outside of the supply to the pipeline, the current pipeline that we’re building, and we’ve moved forward on that element.”
This second gas project follows the initial gas-to-energy initiative, which aims to transport natural gas from the offshore Stabroek Block to an onshore processing facility on the west bank of the Demerara River. This project includes the construction of a 220-kilometer pipeline designed to carry at least 50 million cubic feet of gas per day. The gas-to-energy project is expected to significantly reduce electricity costs by 50% and stimulate growth in the industrial and manufacturing sectors.
Jagdeo emphasized the broader vision for the gas reserves, stating, “We may have another 70 million cubic or so—70million cubic to come in on that pipeline. We have to now make a determination on how we would utilize that. It could be for generating additional power, fertilizer, different things.”
The government’s approach thus far he said, included discussions with ExxonMobil and its partners to explore further opportunities for gas monetization to maximize the benefits of the gas reserves for the country’s economy.
Despite the strategy not being finalized, Jagdeo assured that the work on the strategy continues and that the project is far from being abandoned. “It’s not an abandoned project,” he noted.
In addition, he noted that the strategic decisions being made now will likely have long-term positive impacts on the country’s development trajectory.
