With plans in the pipeline to relaunch the Request for Proposals (RFP) to restart the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project (AFHP) this year, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh has reminded that it was the direct obstruction by the then A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and Alliance For Change (AFC) Opposition parties back in 2013 that caused the project to fail.
Finance Minister, Dr Ashin Singh
The 165-megawatt AFHP was the flagship initiative of the Bharrat Jagdeo-crafted Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS). But the project failed to take off despite having a developer in United States-based Sithe Global, which was backed by investment major The Blackstone Inc.
During last week’s debates on the $781.9 billion Budget 2023, Minister Singh and AFC’s General Secretary David Patterson went down a wormhole of the history of the Amaila Falls project and what caused its downfall nearly 10 years ago.
In August 2013, Sithe Global announced that it was pulling out of the project, which it said was too large to continue without national consensus and had cited the lack of consensus in Parliament. The then APNU and AFC oppositions had both expressed concerns about the project and voted down key pieces of legislations which consequently halted the project.
Shelved
Then during its term in office from 2015 to 2020, the APNU/AFC Administration again shelved the project.
“Amaila Falls did not happen as a direct consequence of actions taken by the APNU/AFC in this House… Let me repeat, Amaila Falls did not happen because of direct obstruction by the APNU/AFC,” Dr Singh contended.
Patterson had argued earlier that, “…the Amaila Falls Project, for the records, was not killed by the coalition. Far from it! It was still-born. It died from malnutrition and lack of financial and technical substance as well as bad ‘parents’.”
However, the Finance Minister called out the AFC GS for trying to rewrite history as if the former coalition partners played no role in the downfall of the project.
“Once again, Mr Patterson tried to hoodwink the people of Guyana,” the Minister stated.
Opposition MP David Patterson
He went on to remind the House of the AFC subsequently backtracking on its position in 2013 to give a last minute ‘lifeline’ to the project but this was after Sithe Global had already withdrawn.
“I’m not saying that the AFC did not collude with APNU in obstructing this project… don’t get me wrong at all. I’m not suggesting that the AFC was not a co-conspirator and did not collude in frustrating and derailing this project but in this instance, voted in favour of this project… But Patterson comes to the House now and conveniently forgets about all of that…”
“[There were] facilities around the world that Sithe Global had built. These people know what they were doing. They were part of a large credible investment group but yet, Sir, the APNU/AFC… decided upon themselves that [Sithe Global] didn’t know what they were doing and they’re gonna block this project,” Minister Singh posited.
Relaunching
Nevertheless, during his presentation of the 2023 Budget on January 16, Dr Singh had noted that Government will be relaunching a Request for Proposals for the restart of the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project.
The revival of the 165-megawatt AFHP was one of the promises made by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic in its 2020 manifesto.
AFHP is expected to deliver a steady source of clean, renewable energy, which is affordable and reliable, and is envisioned to meet approximately 90 per cent of Guyana’s domestic energy needs while removing dependency on fossil fuels.
It is expected that the AFHP would be based on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) model, wherein the company would supply electricity to the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Inc at a cost not exceeding US$0.07737 per kWh, and wherein the company would provide the entire equity required by the project and undertake all the risks associated with the project.
Construction on the hydropower project was supposed to start last year, with an expected completion date being in 2027.
The AFHP was awarded to China Railway First Group in November 2021, but the contract negotiations were stalled and the company indicated to Government its inability to execute the project in keeping with the BOOT model – an arrangement that Government insists on keeping. CRFG wanted to enter into an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract with the Government instead, but this was not facilitated.
Nevertheless, President Dr Irfaan Ali had indicated in December last that Guyana is currently in bilateral talks with its North American neighbours – the United States and Canada – on the Amaila Falls Project.
The Head of State had told reporters that the Government has received a lot of interest and proposals from different bilateral partners.
“When I was in the US, I had a meeting with the Energy Secretary [Jennifer Granholm] and her entire staff, and I mentioned this project and the importance of the project, and opening it up to the US and investors – just as it is opened up to for any other investor. The Canadians have [also] expressed some interest,” President Ali had stated.
At the time, the Guyanese leader explained that his Administration was in the process of conducting assessments in order to ascertain the best possible way forward.
“We are doing assessments now… There’s a lot of bilateral talks that are going on, and then we have to make a structured decision on how we go forward,” he had noted stated.
Back in October 2022, Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana, Mark Berman, had disclosed that the Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC) had held discussions with the Guyana Government on the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project.
Canada is well known for its hydropower infrastructure. In fact, the clean and renewable energy supplied by hydropower accounts for over 60 per cent of all the electricity generated in Canada, and Berman has said this is an area in which Canada could provide assistance to Guyana. (G8)
