During the last elections campaign President Donald Ramotar placed heavy emphasis on developing renewable energy sources under a government led by him and we are already seeing tangible evidence on the pronouncements he made in this regard. One of the first things that this new government did was to grapple with the Amaila Falls hydro project and swiftly terminate the contract for the access road as the contractor has clearly made a mess of things. Moves are currently afoot to obtain financing for the project as the President vowed that he will ensure its fruition as it is crucial to Guyana’s industrial and economic take-off.
In fact, Guyana most likely would have had its first hydro-power facility as far back as the 1960s because of the People’s Progressive Party government of 1961-1964 under the visionary leadership of the late President Dr. Cheddi Jagan, who was Premier at the time. His government had clinched an agreement with the Cuban government for the construction of a hydropower plant in the Demerara River. However, by the time the project could  have been started his government was removed through British and US machinations in 1964 and the new government abandoned the project.
The People’s National Congress (PNC) government attempted another hydro project in the late 1970s, the Upper Mazaruni hydropower project but it was beyond their capacity and the project was abandoned with hundreds of millions of dollars lost. In fact, the project was used as a camouflage for denying the payment of a $14 day minimum wage which the trade unions were calling for. The then Prime Minister L.F.S Burnham at a May Day rally had asked the question: Do you want the hydro or $14? His henchmen strategically placed near to the microphone proudly shouted: Hydro! Unfortunately, the Guyanese people got neither.
Today with the spiraling cost of fossil fuels and the focus on climate change and global warming, developing renewable sources of energy is not an option but rather is an imperative.
In this regard, it was good news for Guyana when it was disclosed that the European Union (EU), in promoting the use of sustainable and climate friendly energy, has recently approved a project for the development of a Micro-Hydropower System on the Chiung River, Kato, in Region 8, Guyana.
The Financing Agreement [FA] for the project has since been dispatched by the EU Delegation in Guyana to the Minister of Finance who acts as the National Authorising Officer [NAO] for  EU-funded programmes in Guyana.
The EU said that, as part of the Government’s broader hinterland electrification programme, the system will comprise a 330 kilowatt micro-hydropower station with its primary energy source being the 36m head waterfall in the Chiung River in the vicinity of Kato village.
Sufficient generating capacity for electrical services are to be provided to a secondary school complex to be constructed by the Ministry of Education, existing government buildings such as the nursery/primary schools, the guest house, the police outpost, medical facilities, school dormitories and to also facilitate agro-processing and commercial farming. Furthermore, the system will provide electricity to Paramakatoi through a 16 km transmission line which forms part of the intervention.
According to the EU, it is expected that the Government will fast track the construction of the secondary school facility, which is a pre-condition for the investment to be made.
In the longer term, if power generation could be increased, then it could open a whole new vista of opportunities for agro-processing in the region which has vast potential for agriculture because many of the vegetables such as potatoes, onions etc which cannot be grown in other regions could be grown there. However, because of the region’s geography, transporting produce poses severe logistical problems so if electricity could become available for processing of produce, then it could bring tremendous benefits to farmers there. Therefore, this is an area which should be examined closely with a view to making it a reality.