Key Projects of Guyana

Amaila Falls Hydroelectric Project

Guyana, known as ‘ the land of many waters’, plans to turn this natural resource into an energy source by building a dam where the Amaila and Kuribrong rivers meet. The 165 MW Amaila Falls Hydroelectric Project will generate power for the two biggest cities, Georgetown and Linden, supplying up to 70 per cent of the country’s electricity. Construction of the new facility will take around four years. However, the project has been on hold since US-based Sithe Global, the private sector partner, pulled out in August 2013, when the National Assembly failed to pass legislation crucial to the project’s progress. The project was the flagship of former President Bharrat Jagdeo’s Low Carbon Development Strategy, but has failed to gain cross-party support.

Public-Private Partnerships

The Guyana Government has embraced the public-private partnership model as a means to financing new infrastructure.

Several projects are planned, including construction of the Demerara Harbour Bridge and the building of a new hydropower plant and a large hotel. However, some of these projects have stalled, leading the International Monetary Fund to urge the government to seriously consider improving how it goes about structuring its public-private partnership deals for large-scale projects.