PM Phillips – Guyana to develop an electric vehicle industry

Prime Minister, Mark Phillips declared that Guyana will be pursuing a low carbon transportation
infrastructure to reduce the demand for imported fossil fuels for vehicular transport in 2022.
Phillips made this disclosure on the third day of the International Energy Conference and Expo
ongoing at the Marriott hotel, Georgetown. He pointed out that Guyana remains committed to a
low carbon economy, while at the same time advancing its transition away from conventional
energy sources. “To accomplish this, we intend to foster the development of an electric vehicle
industry to substitute fossil fuels with electricity while enhancing the ability of the electric grid
to integrate high levels of intermittent renewable energy,” Phillips said.
He continued, “To this end, the installation of fast-charging stations for electric vehicles will be
piloted in 2022 in Regions Three, Four and Six. This would be supplemented with future
initiatives to increase efficiency levels of vehicle consumption of fuel.”  The senior government
official disclosed that the new oil producing nation intends to create an energy mix using low
carbon energy resources such as solar, hydro, wind, biomass and natural gas.
PM Phillips said the energy mix will lead to more than 500 megawatts of newly installed energy
over the next five years. It was pointed out that the Gas-to-Energy Project, will play a major role
in government’s effort. “The project will provide 300 megawatts of power to the national grid
and is expected to result in substantial cost savings for power generation, while reducing
electricity costs to consumers by at least 50 percent. In parallel, the implementation of the 165
megawatts Amaila falls hydropower project will be advanced to further enhance our nation’s
energy security,” Phillips said.
The Prime Minister pointed out that Guyana’s energy transition will generally undergo three
stages. From 2022 to 2027, there will be a combination of natural gas, hydro and solar power.
Stage two will see the replacement of heavy fuel oil, the expansion of wind farms and the
commissioning of Guyana’s second hydro plant from 2027 to 2032. The third phase which will
commence from 2032 onwards will see the continued expansion of those projects using new
technology. Phillips however declared that government is developing solar farms and mini hydro
power systems in the hinterland with close to $1.1B provided in budget 2022 for that purpose.
He said that access to energy has far-reaching economic, environmental and social benefits.
“Consequently, in addition to serving domestic needs, it is important to link rural electrification
efforts to productive activities such as ICT, commerce, and agro-processing to allow for greater
community involvement, retention of skills in the community and long-term sustainability,”
Phillips stressed. The PM reiterated that Guyana remains committed to achieving a low carbon
economy, and added that the transition to clean energy will remain a national priority.
He disclosed that the four-day energy conference which culminates on Friday is being held under
the theme ‘Charting a sustainable energy future.’