Largest solar PV farm in Guyana to be constructed in Linden, Reg 10

– Region to receive 15 megawatts of solar power by end of 2026

In a significant step towards advancing solar power in Guyana, an 8-megawatt solar PV farm – the largest of its kind – will be constructed in the mining town of Linden in Region 10 (Upper Demerara- Berbice).
The solar power push in Guyana is being supported under the Guyana Utility-Scale Solar Photovoltaic Program (GUYSOL), which is a program that sets out to build solar farms across the country.
The GUYSOL initiative, funded by the Guyana/Norway partnership with an estimated investment of US$83.3 million, aims to diversify Guyana’s energy mix.
The programme is administered by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and aligns with Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy.
The initiative emphasizes climate-resilient renewable energy resources in electricity generation.
During an appearance at Linden’s Statutory Meeting on Wednesday, Program Coordinator of the Program Execution Unit of the Guyana Power and Light Inc., Amir Dillawar, updated stakeholders on how this initiative would transform the region’s energy sector. He highlighted that, in the near future, the region’s energy mix would comprise of 15 megawatts of solar power.
“GYSOL intends to build 33 megawatts of solar PV by 2026. Of the 33, there (are) 15 megawatts of solar PV to be installed in Region 10. Those 15 megawatts are broken into three sites. We have Retrieve, Block 37, and Dakoura,” he detailed.
In fact, he revealed that the largest solar PV farm in the country would be constructed in Retrieve, Linden.
“For this project, these three farms that are going to be built in Linden, eight megawatts (are) going to go at Retrieve, three megawatts at Dakoura, and four megawatts at Block 37. So, Linden is going to have the largest solar farm that will be deployed in the short future in Guyana at Retrieve,” he explained.
These solar farms, he noted, would be supported by modern storage infrastructure, and would be connected to a battery storage system that is capable of storing over 20- megawatts of solar power.
“The 15 megawatts in Region 10 also include a 22 megawatt-hour battery energy storage system. Now, this battery energy storage system is going to be installed at the LECI (Linden Electricity Company Incorporated) substation. You will have the largest battery bank instalment deployed in Guyana in the short while, unless another project comes along,” he explained.
Dillawar told the council that, with anticipation that the contract would be signed in March, and a maximum of 18 months being given to complete the project, all three solar farms are expected to be completed by the end of next year.
“So, we’re looking at, we’re currently in March. By the end of March, all things being equal, we should be ready to have a contract signed for the execution of these projects. The contractor is given 18 months to construct these farms, all three of them together…That puts us squarely for completion by the end of next year. These farms are going to feed directly into the LECI system,” he detailed.
Guyana Times understands that when completed, these solar farms would not only reduce the region’s greenhouse emission, but would also slash the subvention that central government provides for the offsetting of the difference between the sales cost and the purchase cost of electricity in the region.