CONSTRUCTION work on the 20KW Hosororo hydropower project at Mabaruma is moving apace, and key pieces of equipment are already on site.
During a visit to the site by the Guyana Chronicle last weekend, persons there reported that the contractor is aiming to complete the construction phase of the project before year-end.

They also reported that plans are moving apace to make the power plant operational upon completion of the foundation works, and that thereafter testing will be undertaken before a decision is made to connect the power generated by the site to the grid at Mabaruma.

The project site lies at the Hosororo Creek, close to the Hosororo Falls, while the project proper is intended to feature a new design that was conceptualised by Guyana Energy Authority (GEA) engineers, and will entail the construction of a 20kW run-of-the-river type micro-hydropower plant, inclusive of weir/intake and penstocks, but will use the existing power station after it has undergone some repairs.

Workmen were last weekend also in the process of completing foundation works at the higher end of the project site where the source of the water is located. A concrete foundation has already been laid, while the creek has been diverted to the side of it.

Several pipes will be connected to the concrete structure, and will carry water downstream past an old reservoir which was constructed in the 1980s when the project was first tried.
A power station, which will convert and send power to the Mabaruma power grid, has already been constructed, and mechanical parts have been taken to the area for installation. Reports are that power lines and additional utility poles will be set up soon.

Residents of Hosororo Hill told the Guyana Chronicle that the project is a welcome initiative, as it will ensure that the community and nearby villages receive electricity for additional hours. Already, a mega solar farm, reportedly the largest in Guyana, has been established at the nearby town of Mabaruma at Khan’s Hill.

An application was made by the Hinterland Electrification Company Inc/Mabaruma Power Company on May 11, 2017, for a Hydro-Electric Power Licence. This is according to the Official Gazette of September 1, 2018. The company will manage the Hosororo hydropower project.

The original plant at Hosororo was built in the late 1980s to supply electricity to an agricultural processing facility that was built nearby. The project was abandoned some years after its inauguration.

In 2015, the German Government, through its German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) initiative, committed to assisting the GEA with developing the project. The US$165,175 project received US$91,108 in financing from the Government of Guyana and US$74,067 in financing from the GIZ/REETA.

According to the GEA, a lot of work was done over the past three years to reach the current level of the project’s realisation.

The GEA will use the knowledge and experience gained from this project to continue its efforts towards the development of hydropower in Guyana, in keeping with its vision to provide reliable energy in an economically, environmentally and socially sustainable framework.