No signed deal yet with InterEnergy for GPL supervision – Jagdeo

…says DR firm most cost-effective option, talks ongoing

Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo has clarified that no agreement has been signed with Dominican Republic-based company InterEnergy Group Limited (IEG) for the supervision of works to be conducted by the Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL).
While some sections of the media had reported that an agreement was signed, Jagdeo explained that negotiations are still ongoing.
“Let me make it clear, the InterEnergy agreement has not been signed until now…there is negotiation going on. There is a proposal that went to Cabinet that spoke of this, but we now need to see that they’re actually delivering on what is in the proposal. When a company makes an offer, you look at it and compare it with others, but then you have to discuss and concretise in clear, legal language what this is, and that negotiation is still ongoing, and I’m not even sure it will be concluded before the elections,” the vice president explained.
He added that there is still the possibility that talks could break down and “we may have to go back to the drawing table again.”
However, when any agreement is signed, Jagdeo assured that the document would be made public.

Reports are that the agreement caters for the supervision of works such as the installation of more than 300 kilometres of 230 kV and 69 kV transmission lines, the construction of five new substations, the upgrade of another, and the building of medium-voltage circuits, to the tune of US$422 million.
Additionally, reports are that the firm would also be tasked with assessing the existing power grid with a view of developing a smart grid and would review the natural gas-fired plants as well as the fossil fuel-generated plants.
Jagdeo confirmed that the cost would amount to US$650,000 per month but noted that this is the most cost-effective option available.
“I think they had several proposals from different groups that they considered…and this one was the most cost-effective one,” he explained.
“Often, a firm to supervise projects comes up with 5-8 per cent of the contract price; this is lower, significantly lower,” he added.
Moreover, Jagdeo noted that IEG is a company that is well-known and possesses great technical capabilities. He posited that the company will bring great value in being able to assist in the buildout of a modern energy infrastructure to meet international standards.
Furthermore, the vice president rejected reports that the arrangement was “secretly done.”
Since last year, the Guyana Government had signalled its intention to work with IEG, among other partners, to assist GPL.
“They are one option. They’ve been working with us, trying to help us identify gaps and build out the system that they will support. So, yes, they are in the equation,” President Irfaan Ali stated in April 2024.
An MOU to this effect was already signed in January 2024.
When the MOU was signed, both IEG and GPL had agreed to engage in discussions to explore opportunities and identify potential areas for collaboration and development of GPL through the implementation of IEG’s expertise and know-how in electricity generation, transmission, and distribution, and in the management of electricity systems and assets.