Finding that the project would be too costly, the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) had to cancel requested Expressions of Interest (EoIs) from businesses to supply up to 30 MW of power and has instead decide to purchase from MACORP and Giftland.
To offset generation shortfalls which have led to blackouts, GPL is purchasing 5 MW of power from Giftland Mall and recently invested US$2.5M to buy generator sets totalling 10 MW from MACORP.
“GPL, when they looked at it, realized it would have been costly so they abandoned the process; they did not bother going through. Instead, they bought 10 MW of power generator sets from MACORP. The gensets will be owned by GPL. We have already brought in 5 MW from Giftland so that has put us to 15 MW,” Minister in the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar told Stabroek News.
GPL had in August this year issued the Request for EoIs from “technically and financially sound” businesses to submit for the supply of a minimum of 1 megawatt (MW) and a maximum of 30 MW of firm power generation capacity with appropriate substation where necessary to interconnect with the national grid at either 13.8 kV or 69 kV”. Generating unit size should not exceed ten MW, it added.
The additional power supply comes even as the infrastructure is being installed for the 45.5 MW generating sets that were bought under the APNU+AFC administration from Finnish firm, Wartsila.
On Friday, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo assured that plans were in place for power generation during the Christmas peak season.
“Once the baseload comes in, [it] can be deployed across the country…so that is all to ensure we have emergency power as we approach Christmas and into the New Year, pending the establishment of the major baseload capacity,” he said.
Jagdeo said that the additional generation will be used for this period and by April the new generator sets will be inaugurated.
This was echoed by Indar who explained, “… We are trying our very best to speed up our civil works … the generators are heavy; one alone weighs 150 metric tonnes and it is five of them. So we have to build proper foundation, have proper piling.”
“All of the below works has to be solid. The area is being prepared. The below ground work is proceeding well and on schedule and when that is finished the above ground begins and will take us to April 2021. We are trying our best to see how we can work with the Wartsila people to speed it up. In the immediate term we are putting 5 MW from Giftland and then another 10 MW coming in at the end of this month, first week next month, from MACORP. We have them to boost the power at strategic places,” he added.
Indar said that currently, the locally-run engineering company Power Producers and Distribu-tors Incorporated (PPDI) and GPL are in discussions as to who will do the maintenance of the generating sets.
“They have the capacity. Right now they maintain all of the Wartsila plants and are in discussion on the 46.5 MW”, he added.
PPDI’s website states that it was established in December 2016, and is a state-owned enterprise contracted to operate and maintain four power plants on behalf of the Guyana Power & Light Inc (GPL). These power plants were previously operated and maintained by Wartsila Operations Guyana Inc. (WOGI).
“PPDI is responsible for a total electrical output of 106.7 megawatts of installed power generation capacity within the Demerara to Berbice Intercon-nected System. The four power plants under PPDI’s management are Garden of Eden (22 MW), Kingston #1 (22MW), Kingston #2 (36.3 MW) and Vreed-en-Hoop (26.4 MW),” the company said.
In 2018, GPL gave over all of its generators to PPDI to maintain.
