As part of its Sustainable Energy Programme, Government is looking to rehabilitate the Moco Moco Hydro Plant. Accordingly, it is inviting expressions of interests (EoI) from both local and overseas firms for consultancy services.
An advertisement placed by Project Coordinator of the Hinterland Electrification Company Inc, Horace Williams, in today’s edition of the Guyana Times details that Government is looking to have geotechnical investigation of the Moco Moco Hydro Plant site done, and this will inform the designs for the rehabilitation of the plant, to reduce the likelihood of landslides and the associated risk of damage to the plant.
A landslide damaged this penstock in 2003, causing a cessation of operations at the Moco-Moco Hydropower Station
This project would in part be funded by finances received from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)’s Global Environment Facility (GEF). Williams outlined that the main objective of the consultancy is to carry out the necessary site investigations to obtain the required geological and topographical information in order to facilitate rehabilitation design of the Moco-Moco Hydropower Plant, particularly as it relates to the penstock alignment which was destroyed by a mass soil landslide in 2003.
The services will include geological survey and engineering, geological mapping, topographic mapping, geophysical surveys, and excavation of test pits. In order to be considered for shortlisting, interested consultancy firms from the Bank’s member countries that have the relevant resources, qualifications and experience are required to submit their Expressions of Interest. This document should carry no more than 15 pages, and must include: legal name of the consulting firm; name of legal representative of the firm; address; telephone numbers and fax; email address of contact person and website; information about the consulting firm as an entity and its principal areas of expertise and activities; description of general experience relevant to the assignment undertaken by the firm within the last ten years.
Applicants are also required to submit a description of the activities and the level of responsibility held by the company in each of its previous projects (technical, supervisory or administrative).
Consultants will be selected in accordance with the procedures set out in the IDB’s Policies for the Selection and Contracting of Consultants financed by the Inter-American Development Bank, and is open to all eligible bidders as defined in the policies.
The Moco-Moco Hydropower Station was developed as a run-of-the-river project in the mid- 1990s. The penstock was damaged by a landslide in July 2003, resulting in a cessation of operations. The Lethem Power Company has since been providing power by way of Diesel generators.
The Government of Guyana desires to have the plant rehabilitated and put back into operation. In this regard, consultancy services are being sought to provide a detailed geotechnical investigation of the site prior to the development of the Moco Moco Rehabilitation Project.
This project falls under the Sustainable Energy Programme of which the general objective is to improve institutional capacities of the Public Utility and Ministry of Public Infrastructure through the training of said institutions’ staff and promotion of the use of nonconventional Renewable Energy Technologies (RET) in the urban areas and the Hinterlands, with the aim to: implement sustainable business models for operation and maintenance (O&M) of Renewable Energy (RE) projects; increase quality energy access in Guyana; reduce the long-term operational costs of on-grid and off-grid electricity service; and contribute to sector sustainability and reduction of Greenhouse Gas (GhG) emissions.
The programme has three components: strengthening of the policy and institutional framework to implement RETs in Guyana; strengthening of the public utility’s capabilities to improve electricity supply and promote the use of RETs; and contribute to sector sustainability with the implementation of cost-effective RETs for on-grid and off-grid electricity generation.
