A local engineering company has commenced work to reactivate the Tumatumari hydroelectricity station in Region Eight (Potaro/Siparuni) as part of a wider plan for industrial development in the area.
It is anticipated that full rehabilitation of the station will start this year and is scheduled to be completed within a year of commencement. The hydroelectricity component of the Tumatumari Industrial Development Project is being spearheaded by Dynamic Engineering Company Limited of Eccles and its principal Lloyd Rose told Stabroek News in an exclusive interview that a proof test to demonstrate that the main components of the hydropower plant are operable, has been successfully completed. “The project has a long-term perspective and it is mainly grounded in industrial development in the area over time,” Rose, an engineer, said. He said a business plan has been prepared for the Tumatumari Industrial Development Project and apart from the core hydroelectricity component, three other industries, on the basis of reliable, affordable power from the hydro, are envisioned. These are lumber processing, mineral processing and the production of dimension stone or block granite.
The Tumatumari hydroelectricity station at Tumatu-mari Falls on the Potaro River was the first hydropower station in Guyana and was constructed by British Guiana Consolidated Goldfields Limited to power two large dredges for gold mining there and at Konawaruk in the mid-1950s. It was said that it had an installed capacity of 1500kW and used 2 x 750kW Francis turbines. Following a prolonged workers strike, the operations were closed in the early 1960s but put back into use in 1976 by the Guyana National Service (GNS) to supply power to its administrative centre and other activities. Up to 1987, one turbine functioned.
Rose said the hydroelectricity station has the capacity to generate 2 MVA (mega volt ampere) of power, which is close to 2MW. “We have completed what is called the preliminary rehabilitation of the hydroelectric station or the proof test,” he said, while explaining that this is a test to demonstrate that the hydroelectricity station can operate with the main equipment that has been installed over the years; namely, the water turbine, gear box and other civil infrastructure.
The exercise was completed successfully in December and some electricity was generated. Work to restore the station started last August. Rose said the equipment was extensively vandalised, with the exception of the main turbine and the gear box, which together form the main component of the station. Fortunately, these were intact, he said. Support was received from the original equipment manufacturer from Wales, UK, with which the company is in contact. “Based on the demonstration of that technical feasibility for the operating of the station on the basis of the existing machinery, the main machinery, we will now move to the next stage of a full rehabilitation… and acquiring the financing that is necessary for the full rehabilitation,” Rose said. He added that they anticipate that full rehabilitation of the station will commence this year and it should be completed within a year of its commencement.
With regard to financing, he said that some will be coming from the group of initial investors already involved in the project but they are also looking for other strategic investors as well as loan financing from the capital markets. Rose declined to say what the estimated cost of the rehabilitation would be but revealed that they have invested just under US$100,000 so far. However, he said, it is anticipated that the total investment in the entire industrial project would be in excess of US$3 million.
He said they started work on sourcing funds from the development banks. In addition, they have approached DFLSA here and the entity indicated an interest in the project but has not progressed to a final decision as yet.
Rose said they have a letter of commitment from the government, which describes a number of milestones and timelines for further facilitation so there is a clear understanding on the way forward. “We are at the stage now where we expect the government to provide us with a full bankable, commercial lease of the facility, which we have recently requested as part of that graduated process of facilitation,” he said. He said a projection indicates that the electricity supplied will be at a cost of between 15 and 20 US cents per kilowatt hour.
In relation to the industrial projects to be powered by the station, Rose said these were going to be multi-faceted. The lumber processing would involve the milling and drying of lumber for export whilemineral processing envisages tailings recovery in the adjacent mining communities. The production of dimension stone or block granite, which is used in the construction industry is new to Guyana, Rose said. The hydroelectricity component and the mineral processing are the most advanced, he added. The projects will be located in the area around Tumatumari. “It will take us about three years perhaps even a little longer,” he said of development of the project. At the completion, he said, it is hoped that there would be a firm base for industrial business operations in the area based on value-added production. He stressed the value-added aspect, while citing as an example that dried lumber does not come out of Guyana in large quantities. “We will be starting that on an industrial scale underpinned by the energy, the cheap energy that we will produce from hydro,” he said, while adding that it will also happen in a manner that is friendly to the environment.
Further, he said there will be sustainable employment. Currently about 20 people are employed on the hydropower project and this will double by the beginning of May and there will be an onward progression, Rose said.
Some of the electricity will be supplied to nearby communities, including Mahdia, some 25 kilometres away. “Insofar as energy or electricity supplies to communities is concerned that will only be done as a bulk supply to the community or the electricity authority in the area, the electricity distribution authority in the area. We are not likely to be involved in electricity retail distribution,” Rose added.
Asked what spurred the investment in the resuscitation of the hydropower station, Rose said the investors are business people. “It’s a business venture and it involves investment by the private sector (of) which Dynamic Engineering Company Limited and myself were the sort of principal architects of the project, but for which involvement has expanded to other investors.” He said the investment has only come now but the project was ten years in the making.
However, he said the timing seems to be opportune in the sense that it coincides with the Low Carbon Development Strategy. In this regard, he noted that hydropower will contribute positively to that strategy of development.
According to Rose, the restoration of the plant will underpin industrial development in Sub-region ‘A’ of Region Eight, which is much needed. He noted the high unemployment in the area. At the same time, he said, the development is going to take place in the heartland of the natural resources of Guyana, while pointing to the forest and mineral resources as well as the availability of labour. “All of these resources combined in that region, the timing just seems to be right,” he said. He pointed out too that the area is accessible by an all-weather road. Rose also stressed that they will work closely with the community, which has indicated deep interest in the work.
Quizzed on the expertise of the investors, Rose said that the principals are all very experienced engineers and professionals. “We’re not just business people… we’re professionals in the industry,” he said adding that they have been able to identify additional expertise where they fall short.
Dynamic Engineering–the principal sponsor of the project—is an engineering services company operating in the construction industry for last 21 years in Guyana. Services offered are mainly in heavy civil works but they are also involved in projects for the electricity, water and telephone companies over the last 15 years.
