President Ali says; affirms holistic framework being pursued
reiterates administration’s commitment to reducing cost of energy by 50 per cent
AS the government continues to roll out holistic initiatives to advance the energy sector, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, said that within two years the cost of energy will be reduced by 50 per cent.
Maintaining that there cannot be a “one-size-fits-all” approach when it comes to dealing with Guyana’s energy framework, Dr. Ali stated: “Addressing the energy equation has to be a holistic framework. It cannot be a one-size-fits-all framework,” while explaining the benefits of the Amaila Falls Hydropower station (AFHP) and the gas-to-energy project.
He made these statement during commissioning of the National Milling Company of Guyana (NAMILCO’s) US$8 million/G$1.6 billion state-of-the-art mixing plant at its Agricola, East Bank Demerara factory.
“…Guyana was not allowed the possibility of this enormous project and the benefits that the [AFHP] would’ve brought for us, in ensuring the reliability in getting cleaner energy and also bringing down the cost of energy,” President Ali related.
The AFHP, with its potential 165 megawatts of power generation, could have been a game-changer for Guyana, but the project was not pursued by the former APNU+AFC coalition administration.
The Head-of-State said that in order to foster growth within areas such as the industrial, manufacturing and agro-processing sectors, there must be investments towards reducing the cost of energy.
“That is why the gas-to shore project is so important. It brings efficiency, it brings reliability and it allows us [to] bring down that cost of energy,” Dr. Ali said, while reiterating his commitment to reducing the cost of energy by 50 per cent in two years.
President Ali then explained how the private sector could benefit from this and how it fits into his administration’s overall plan, which targets the creation of an ideal investment climate.
The gas-to-energy project, which aims to provide 300 megawatts of power, is expected to significantly boost the country’s energy capacity.
A 12-inch pipeline, which will stretch some 200km offshore, will be used to transport natural gas from the Liza Phase One and Liza Phase Two Floating, Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessels offshore, to the power plant and Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) facility.
Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), which is owned by ExxonMobil Guyana and partners Hess and CNOOC, has guaranteed the government that a minimum of 50 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd) will be transported through the pipeline by 2024.
The pipeline, which is expected to cost US$1 billion, will have a maximum capacity of 130 mmscfd.
The conversion of natural gas from ExxonMobil’s offshore operations to electricity is a key component of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government’s aim to lower energy costs by at least 50 per cent through an energy mix which incorporates gas, solar, wind, and hydropower.
