-says 17 wrecks removed from Demerara River

WITH continued expansion in Guyana’s maritime sector, Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation, Deodat Indar, has noted that activity has gone up by some 54 per cent since 2020 and is expected to climb even more.

The minister made these remarks during the recent commissioning of two pilot boats, during which he noted that in 2020, when the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) took office, there were just about 2,037 ships coming into the Demerara River.

As of last year, he noted that this had increased to 3,144 ships, an addition of 1,107 that came over the five years.

“So, the level of activity over the five-year period has gone up by 54 per cent since 2020, and it’s expected to climb as the economy grows,” he said.

To this end, he noted that as the country imports a lot of its consumables and building materials, which come through the waterways, the government has been working on continuous dredging of the main channel.

Meanwhile, he noted that they have also done something that was costing ship owners a lot in terms of insurance, which was removing wrecks from the river.

He disclosed that 17 major wrecks were removed, which were done through a tendering process to ensure that a competent company could have done the job well.

“The wrecks were there, and they were hazards to vessels coming in and going out,” he said.

As a result of that, he said that insurance for vessels entering the river was very high and that cost had impacted the cost for goods arriving in Guyana.

However, with the 17 wrecks removed, that is no longer a problem and also, it will aid in the expansion of maritime traffic.