Guyana pushes ahead with renewable energy transition amid booming oil sector

By Andrew Carmichael

Even as Guyana cements its place among the world’s fastest-growing oil-producing nations, the Government says the country is rapidly advancing along a parallel and deliberate path toward clean, renewable energy.
According to senior officials, Guyana’s historic Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) and a new wave of solar and hydropower investments prove that the nation’s oil wealth is being used not to delay the energy transition, but to accelerate it.
This balanced approach, officials say, is rooted in nearly two decades of climate leadership that began long before Guyana struck oil.
Speaking during a recent address in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) Senior Minister with Responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, reminded that Guyana’s clean-energy journey did not begin with oil revenues, but with a global contribution no other country had made at the time: placing a monetary value on standing tropical forests.
He recalled that in 2006, then-President Bharrat Jagdeo delivered what Dr Singh described as “one of the most visionary speeches ever given in Guyana,” highlighting that the country’s pristine rainforest, covering about 18.4 million hectares, served as the “lungs of the earth,” storing vast amounts of carbon for the benefit of the world.
That vision led to the creation of one of the world’s first national low-carbon development strategies and later to the groundbreaking US$250 million Guyana-Norway Agreement (2009), of which Guyana earned US$236 million for proven climate services.
“These resources were earned through strict global verification standards,” Dr Singh said, noting that Guyana also built a world-class Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) system still considered a gold standard worldwide.

Oil revenues complementing—not replacing—clean energy investments
Guyana is now producing over 600,000 barrels of oil per day, expected to exceed 1 million barrels per day (BPD) by 2027. Yet Dr Singh stressed that oil production is not derailing the renewable agenda. Instead, the two sectors are advancing together.
He pointed to Guyana’s 33 megawatts of new solar farms now being built under the revived LCDS program, funded directly from the Norway earnings that had remained untouched from 2015 to 2020.
“These resources will finance a total of 33 megawatts of solar electricity generating capability, with 10 megawatts in Berbice alone, including two 3-megawatt farms in Region Six,” he said.
Additional farms are underway in Region Five, Linden, and Essequibo, expanding renewable generation to every major grid.
Guyana’s most transformative project remains the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project, which would supply 165 megawatts of clean electricity – more than the generating capacity of the entire Demerara-Berbice Interconnected System (DBIS) today.
“This is Guyana’s most bankable and attractive hydropower option. It has been rigorously studied, scientifically and financially, and we will develop it,” Dr Singh emphasised.
He reminded that the project was fully financed in 2013, backed by global investment giant Blackstone, with Guyana contributing only US$80 million of the LCDS earnings. However, political obstruction at the time caused Blackstone to withdraw.
“If implemented, then Guyana would already have 165 megawatts of hydropower on the grid today,” Dr Singh said.
The Government has now recommitted to completing Amaila, alongside new micro-hydro and solar hybrid systems in hinterland communities under the expanding national renewable program.
The target is 70 percent renewable electricity by 2030.
The trajectory includes 33 MW of utility-scale solar, which is currently being implemented.
165 MW of hydropower (Amaila Falls), and 9 MW of solar with battery storage installed in 2023–2024 across hinterland communities.
Additionally, the Gas-to-Energy Project is expected to cut emissions by transitioning heavy fuel oil generation to cleaner natural gas.
The government is also anticipating massive private-sector interest in wind and solar under the LCDS 2030 framework.
With these combined, the Government says the country is on track to cut electricity emissions by 70 percent and significantly slash generation costs by 2030.
Dr Singh emphasised that the transition is also delivering immediate benefits on the ground, including construction jobs, permanent maintenance positions, and opportunities for young Guyanese in engineering, electrical installation, and environmental management.
Speaking about a new solar farm which was recently commissioned at Hampshire on the Corentyne, Dr Singh described it as truly historic, representing continuity from President Jagdeo’s LCDS, evolution under President Ali’s LCDS 2030, and proof that Guyana remains a global model for forest-rich developing states transitioning to clean power.
He reiterated that Guyana is proving it can simultaneously develop its oil sector, which funds national development, accelerate the shift to renewables, and remain one of the world’s top carbon-negative countries due to vast forest cover.
“What we are doing is demonstrating that oil revenues can help build the bridge to a low-carbon future,” he stressed.