By Antonio Dey | HGP Nightly News |
GOEDVERWAGTING, EAST COAST DEMERARA — Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed has intensified his scrutiny of the administration’s energy agenda, questioning the structural integrity of ongoing grid rehabilitation works and accusing the government of misleading the Guyanese public regarding the completion timeline and ballooning capital expenditure of the flagship Wales Gas-to-Energy (GtE) project.
Speaking during an on-site inspection of the Goedverwagting Substation on the East Coast of Demerara, Mohamed identified the facility as a critical distribution link for the Demerara-Berbice Interconnected System (DBIS), but described current civil and electrical interventions at the site as visibly incomplete and substandard.
Repeatedly Pushed Timelines and Broken Tariff Promises
Flanked by technical aides outside the substation gates, the Opposition Leader reviewed the sequence of missed deadlines and revised projections surrounding the delivery of cheaper utility power:
- Shifting Delivery Targets: Mohamed pointed out that significant reductions in domestic and commercial electricity tariffs were originally pledged for delivery in 2024, subsequently deferred to 2025, and have now slipped deep into late 2026 without tangible relief for consumers.
- The 50% Reduction Pledge: The administration’s core electoral commitment to slash retail electricity tariffs by 50 percent by the close of 2025 has been abandoned, Mohamed argued, leaving households to absorb chronic blackout cycles alongside escalating living costs.
- Partial Generation in Question: Mohamed dismissed revised government assurances that the Wales facility will initiate partial generation by December 2026.
“We are in September 2026. Now they are promising us again that by December, they will get some sort of generation. Not the 300 megawatts that they promised us,” Mohamed stated. “This gas-to-energy project cannot be completed this year.”
Capital Escalation Nears US$2B; Contractor Arbitration Scrutinized
Highlighting the project’s escalating financial footprint, Mohamed asserted that the cumulative outlay for the Gas-to-Energy undertaking is rapidly approaching US$2 billion:
- Pipeline Allocation: He noted that approximately US$1 billion of the total capital expenditure is tied directly to the offshore-to-onshore pipeline component.
- Arbitration Settlement: Mohamed drew attention to contractor performance issues involving L.C.S. Trading and Construction, referencing an estimated US$80 million arbitration payout that added to the overall fiscal burden borne by taxpayers.
Aging Distribution Network Unprepared for 300 MW Surge
Beyond delays at the Wales generation site, Mohamed raised fundamental engineering concerns regarding the capacity of Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL) to distribute power even if generation comes online:
- 30- to 40-Year-Old Feeders: Mohamed warned that large swathes of the national distribution network utilize transmission lines and hardware that are between three and four decades old.
- Grid Collapse Risk: Injecting 300 MW of base-load electricity into an antiquated, fragile network without comprehensive upstream conductor upgrades risks triggering widespread, severe transmission failures.
“Just imagine when this Gas-to-Energy project is completed… when they gotta bring in that 300 megawatts of power and then pass it through all these old distribution lines,” Mohamed warned. “Think about the amount of blackout we will be getting in this country.”
Economic Growth on Paper vs. Household Struggles
Broadening his critique to macroeconomic governance, the Opposition Leader challenged government assertions of widespread economic prosperity, arguing that massive fiscal aggregates have failed to alleviate hardship for ordinary families:
- Living Costs and Public Services: Mohamed argued that double-digit GDP expansion remains an abstract statistic that masks severe day-to-day struggles with food prices, high utility expenses, and deteriorated public services.
- The Bank Account Metric: Addressing executive claims that a surging volume of newly opened commercial bank accounts proves household economic elevation, Mohamed countered that thousands of accounts were created strictly to receive state-disbursed cash grants rather than reflecting organic financial accumulation.
- Trillion-Dollar Spending Oversight: Mohamed pointed to the state’s record $1.558 trillion national budget, coupled with a supplementary financial paper seeking an additional $55 billion, questioning why public services—chief among them the national power grid—continue to collapse despite record-breaking allocations.
“People are struggling to make ends meet in this country,” Mohamed concluded. “We might be looking good on paper, but the reality on the ground is completely different.”
Mohamed called on the administration to cease deflecting responsibility and instead institute transparent, independent quality audits across all GPL substation works while laying a realistic, unvarnished schedule for the Gas-to-Energy project before the National Assembly.
