Diaspora in special position to benefit from high-return investments in Guyana – Pres Ali

The Guyana Government is looking to unlock financing within the diaspora to drive a number of large-scale national projects, with President Dr Irfaan Ali promising strong returns on those investments.

He made this declaration during a recent discussion at the Baker Institute for Public Policy, an American think tank housed on the campus of Rice University in Houston, Texas. The armchair discussion was themed on ‘The Future of Guyana’.
According to President Ali, his Government is creating attractive investment opportunities, and the Guyanese diaspora is better positioned to capitalise on these.
“Our diaspora is in a special and unique position… But now I think [we have to look at] how do we unlock their financing? How do we create opportunities for their investments, and I think that is what is exciting for them. And we are on a path of launching a few important projects of national importance for national security that we believe they could invest in with a very good return,” the Guyanese leader noted.
These remarks by the president come just weeks after the Guyana Government issued a preliminary call for investors to support two major projects in the country – the cooking gas bottling plant and fertiliser facility, which will utilise natural gas that will be brought onshore via the Gas-to-Energy (GtE) Phase Two Project at Wales, West Bank Demerara.
In the invite for Preliminary Expressions of Interest (EoIs), the Government made it clear that preference will be given to Guyanese investors, including those in the diaspora, to be part of the entities that would be set up for these energy projects.
This is in keeping with previous commitments by the Government to ensure that Guyanese citizens, both here and abroad, have a stake in major projects and actively participate in the country’s development.
For the Guyana Ammonia and Urea Plant Inc (GAUP), which is pegged at US$300 million, the Government is targeting investments with a cap of US$5 million per investor.
Additionally, the Guyana Gas Bottling and Logistics Company Inc. (GGBLC), which is estimated at US$40 million, has a cap of US$1 million per investor. However, it was noted that interested parties may indicate the maximum amounts they are willing to invest for both projects.
According to the EoI invite that was issued last month, investors can assume a Government guarantee of 10 per cent annual return on both projects. Moreover, both GAUP and GGBLC will be private companies and not publicly traded entities.
It was further explained that this is only a preliminary Expression of Interest. Based on the response, Government will then structure appropriate details of the investment and make a formal call for investments.
The deadline for submission of interest will be May 15, 2026, and proposals must be sent to the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB).

Construction proposals
Only earlier this year, the Guyana Government received 10 proposals each for the construction of the GAUP and GGBLC facilities.
Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips told the Guyana Times three weeks ago that the evaluation teams were being set up to review the proposals and shortlist the bidders for the construction of the gas bottling and fertiliser plants.
Among the 10 regional and international firms that submitted Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) proposals for the ammonia and urea plant was United States-based Lindsayca Guyana Inc – the company that is constructing the highly anticipated Gas-to-Energy (GtE) project at Wales.
Also interested are Trinidad-based Phoenix Welding & Fabricating Inc.; Ideal Engineering Services Inc, a locally registered company in consortium with Nigeria-based Montego Upstream Services Ltd; Northern EPC Alliance (NEA), Lee Kieswetter Heavy Civil (LKHC), and Valour EPC of Canada; China CAMC Engineering Co (CAMCE), China National Chemical Engineering Co (CNCEC), and Dubai-based East Consulting Engineering Company (ECEC); China Railway First Group Co. Ltd and SEDIN Engineering Co Ltd; Hualu Engineering & Technology Co Ltd and China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation; China Wuhan Engineering Corporation Limited; Japan-based Morimatsu, Arkad SpA of Italy, and Netherlands-based CC7 Europe; and Kalpataru Projects International Limited out of India.
According to the EPC document, interested companies will enter into a public-private partnership model, via the Guyana Ammonia and Urea Plant (GAUP) company, to manufacture 300,000 tonnes of fertiliser per annum, using no more than 20 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) of gas.
The project, which is expected to be ready by 2027/2028 when the Gas-to-Energy Phase Two will come on stream, will manufacture and sell fertiliser with the aim of lowering fertiliser prices for Guyana and the broader region, including Northern Brazil and the Caribbean.
On the other hand, EPC proposals for the cooking gas bottling facility in Guyana were received from: local company, Guygas in a joint venture with Makeen Energy out of Denmark and the Indian-headquartered Ramco Industries; Lindsayca Inc.; Trinidad-based Massy Gas Products; Sol Guyana Inc. – part of the Caribbean-operator, Sol Group; French-owned, Rubis Guyana Inc.; Indian-based Divyan International Inc (Guyana); Gas Zipa SASESP (Columbia) JV Fix It Depot and Standard Energy Company; Gate Ventures and Consulting Guyana Inc. in consortium with Propak Systems Lited (Canada) and Makeen Energy (Denmark); ILF Consulting Engineering Inc.
India in collaboration with MAHAPREIT (Mahatma Phule Renewable and Infrastructure Technology Limited) and BB Energy (BBE) and Dec Ogeco (Ogeco) (Singapore).
Based on the EPC document, the proposed GGBLC, under the same public-private partnership model, will bottle, transport, and distribute cooking gas for domestic use. The objective of GGBL is to lower the price of domestic cooking gas.
Through the GtE Project, the Guyana Government is looking to significantly lower the price of cooking gas by piping natural gas from offshore operations to the Wales site where the NGL facility and power plant are currently under construction and will utilise the rich gas from ongoing oil operations in the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana.
Already, some 250 kilometres of 12-inch pipelines have been laid to bring the gas onshore by this yearend. However, only 40 per cent of the pipeline’s capacity will be used by this first phase of the GtE Project to gas up the power plant and NGL facility.
To this end, the Government is now moving ahead with Phase Two of the Gas-to-Energy project to utilise the remaining 60 per cent capacity of the pipeline to bring additional gas onshore.
The GtE Phase Two will see the construction of another 300 MW power plant and NGL facility at the Wales location. With the remaining natural gas available, the Government is planning to set up the gas bottling and fertiliser projects at the Wales site.