36-megawatt Power Ship to offer significant relief to electricity woes

The recently arrived 36-megawatt power ship in Guyana will significantly alleviate existing electricity woes in the country.

However, it is important to note that while it will address a substantial portion of the problem, it alone will not completely solve the challenges posed by the increasing demand for electricity due to population growth and heightened activities.

Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips conducted a comprehensive inspection of the vessel during a tour on Monday while it is anchored at Everton in Region Six. He emphasised that the ship represents a significant investment by the government.

“I must commend the technical manager and the crew of the ship for the immaculate condition that this ship is in. It’s a 22-year-old ship and it looks brand new,” the Prime Minister expressed.

While investing in additional power generation, the government is also ensuring the maintenance of existing power stations nationwide.

Senior Minister Dr Ashni Singh highlighted the ship’s role, along with new generators at Garden of Eden and Colombia power plants, in assessing energy needs.

“The arrival and plugging in of this power ship into the grid along with the other investments will help but they will not solve the problem overnight. However, we are going to continue to monitor how demand grows and what we can do to ensure that we have adequate supply,” Dr Singh explained.

The government is simultaneously pursuing medium-term solutions, including the 300-megawatt Gas-to-Energy project at Whales.

Dr Singh reiterated that despite the power ship’s arrival and connection to the grid, there will be no increase in electricity bills.

Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) (ag) at GPL, Kesh Nandlall affirmed the ship’s capabilities to deliver maximum generation.

“We are on track to interconnect the ship onto the network for May 8 as we initially indicated. We have constructed the transmission lines and then we have to do some protection work. We will then test the ship and connect it,” the CEO (ag) explained.

The vessel, which journeyed from Cuba, stopped at Everton for grid connection after being acquired through a multi-million-dollar contract between GPL, Urbacon Concessions Investments, W.L.L (UCI), a subsidiary of UCC Holdings in Qatar, and Karpowership International.

It will be rented for two years, with a monthly charter fee of US 6.62 cents per kilowatt hour and a maintenance fee of 0.98 US cents per kWh based on electricity generated.