Oil in Berbice River not from power barge – Armogan

Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) Chairman David Armogan has said that allegations of waste oil from the rented power barge being discarded into the Berbice River is untrue.
During a recent meeting with farmers on the East bank of Berbice, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha was told that the Berbice River is being polluted by waste oil which is being deliberately bumped into the river.
Chairman of the East Bank Berbice Fishermen Coop Rishiram Ramkissoon told the minister that the oil was coming from the Power Barge which is situated in the River at Everton.
Mustapha had promised to engage the prime minister on the issue and said the allegations would be investigated.
Ramkissoon has pointed out that the oil in the water was negatively impacting fishing operations in some sections of the river.
Addressing the Regional Democratic Council (RDC), Armogan said both fishermen and persons on the East Bank of Berbice do not know the origin of the oil.
“When people visited the electricity ship to ascertain if that was so, it was found out that it was not so. They don’t know where the oil is coming from. We are yet to find out if people are discharging oil into the river,” Armogan related.
Guyana Power and Light (GPL) has entered into a two-year contract with Urbacon Concessions Investments, W.L.L (UCI). The agreement involves the chartering of a power ship that boasts a considerable capacity of 36 megawatts (MWs) and also encompasses operation and maintenance provisions.
Under the terms of the contract, GPL has agreed to pay a fee of US$0.0662 for every kilowatt-hour (kWh) as a monthly charter fee for the power ship, in addition to a maintenance and operation fee of US$0.0098 per kWh, based on the electricity produced. (G4)