Bids for Gas-to-Energy Phase 2 to come next month – Brassington

With the aim of building capacity to meet the rapidly growing electricity demand in the country, the Guyana Government is expected to receive bids from at least five shortlisted companies in March as it gears up to commence construction on Phase Two of the Gas-to-Energy (GtE) Project sometime this year.
This is according to Project Lead of the Gas-to-Energy Project, Winston Brassington, during the Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo 2026. Brassington appeared on a panel alongside Head of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Inc., Kesh Nandlall, and Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), Dr Mahendar Sharma, on Thursday to discuss the ‘Changing Power Landscape’ in the country.

Currently, Guyana’s peak demand is around 236 megawatts (MW), but this figure is estimated to go up to an estimated 1600-plus MW by 2030 – reflecting a 600 per cent growth.
Against this backdrop, Brassington underscored the need to start working on building capacity to deliver that electricity demand.
“We expect construction to start this year [on Phase Two] because we need the additional power as soon as possible,” he indicated.
Currently, GtE Phase One is underway with a 300-megawatt combined cycle power plant and a Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) facility being constructed at Wales, West Bank Demerara, utilising natural gas that will be piped onshore from oil operation activities in the Stabroek Block.
Already, some 250 kilometres of 12-inch pipelines have been laid to bring the gas onshore. This first phase, however, will only utilise 40 per cent of the pipeline’s capacity, bringing 50 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of dry gas onshore.
But with the pipelines having the capacity to push as much as 120 mmscfd of gas, Government had moved ahead with Phase Two to utilise the remaining 60 per cent capacity of the pipeline, which will see an additional 75 million mmcfd of rich gas brought onshore to power a second 300 MW power plant and NGL facility right at the Wales location.
According to Brassington, five companies have been prequalified for GtE Phase Two and are expected to submit their proposals next month.
“So, we expected by the end of March, we have five companies [submitting their bids]. We’ve divided the expansion into three phases – one is the Natural Gas Liquids plant, which will go right next to the existing one at the [Wales] site; the second is the balance of plant; and [thirdly] the second power plant will go next to the existing one. So, we’re double from 300 megawatts of combined cycle power with gas to 600 MW,” the GtE Project Lead stated.
While Phase Two is targeting start-up in 2030, the first phase of the Gas-to-Energy Project is on track, with the revised timeline, to deliver power by the end of this year.
At the Wales Site, all four turbines are installed on their foundations alongside all four main transformers, as the contractor, United States-based Lindsayca, has ramped up is work cycle and increased labour.
“Our contractor…has promised us that they’re going to complete the 300 MW project – first on simple cycle which is essentially the four gas turbines with a total installed capacity of about 228 megawatts. So that, we expect to have online by the end of the year. Coming with that will be the Natural Gas Liquids plant… By the middle of next year, we’re going to have the combined cycle [power plant] fully completed,” Brassington stated.

Upgrade of transmission infrastructure
Meanwhile, another component of the GtE Phase One is the upgrade of the country’s aged transmission infrastructure. This will see the current 69-kilovolt (kV) lines being replaced with new 230 kV transmission lines.
According to the Project Lead, the installation of the 230 kV line has been completed, running from the Wales site to the Garden of Eden, East Bank Demerara, power station and then to the new power station at Goedverwagting along the Ogle-Eccles Highway.
In addition, Phase One of the GtE Project also includes setting up three new power stations, with the main one being at Goedverwagting, which will also house the control centre, and the other two at Wales.
Also in Wales, where an industrial hub is being mapped called the Wales Development Zone (WDZ), there is planning to use the excess natural gas from the pipeline to set up two major industrial projects – a gas bottling plant and a fertiliser plant.
Only on Thursday, the invite for Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for the Guyana Gas Bottling and Logistics Company (GGBLC) was closed, while the Guyana Ammonia and Urea Plant (GAUP) is open until March 5.
“It’s not a lot of gas compared to what will come in at Berbice, but I think we’re trying to maximise the value chain [with] not only electricity but also the cooking gas and then the downstream activities,” Brassington posited.

Bringing down costs
Only last month, Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, whose office has responsibilities for the country’s energy sector, noted that investments in these two projects will be central to bringing down costs in Guyana, especially food prices.
“Once we could reach to the stage of manufacturing our own fertiliser, that will have a positive impact on agriculture, on our farmers… That has a trigger effect because if you cushion the effect in terms of the cost of production in the farming sector, it will also have an effect on the food that goes on our table, the price that we pay for food,” he had noted.
Currently, the Guyana Government is subsidising the cost of fertiliser to the tune of some $2 billion as part of efforts to support the local agriculture sector. The Prime Minister had pointed out that once Guyana starts producing its own fertiliser, it will not only reduce the cost but also bring in income through export to the Caribbean region.
Similarly, PM Phillips had further stated that Guyana could also be exporting excess bottled gas after meeting local demands.
These two initiatives are set to come onstream when Phase Two of the Gas-to-Energy project is operationalised by 2030.