While the coming on stream of the Amaila Falls hydro project will inevitably change the scope and mode of Wartsila operations in Guyana, it is not likely that its operations will be gradually phased out since fossil fuel generation will have to make up for the shortfall of the hydro during downtime for maintenance.
This is according to Central Manager of Wartsila Caribbean, Aaron Fraser in a comment to the Government Information Agency (GINA) following a meeting with President Donald Ramotar yesterday.
According to GINA, Wartsila has provided 18 years of service to power generation in Guyana and said the possibilities of bringing synergy to all Wartsila equipment with the company at the helm are now being explored.
“It’s more of economic benefits to the country,” Central Manager of Wartsila Guyana Aaron Fraser told GINA.
Among those meeting with the President were General Manager of Wartsila Caribbean, Marc Tarbox, General Manager of Wartsila Areas America Robert Bianco, Occupation Health and Safety Manager Gary Hall and Operation and Maintenance Manager Colin Roberts.
“Wartsila’s longstanding relationship with Guyana’s power company, now the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) has over the years been worthwhile, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds had once said while recalling that Wartsila was a new brand to the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) administration,” GINA said in the press release.
It noted that prior to the commissioning of the Wartsila Power Plant at Kingston, the renting of Caterpillar units to buttress the country’s demand laden generating capacity was the best recourse.
GINA said that during the period 2005 to 2010, the proportion of customers connected to the GPL burgeoned from 127,000 to 151,000 after a US$25M project saw the expansion of power to connect over 40,000 households under the Un-served Areas Electrification Programme (UAEP).
“It is envisaged that within the next four years another 25,000 customers will be added to the grid even though commercial loss and electricity theft continue to challenge GPL’s capacity to maintain sufficiency,” GINA said.
It noted that pressure from inflating fuel prices on the world market had also compelled the power company to graduate from diesel to Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) “even as the government invested in transmission and distribution upgrades with the construction of seven new substations and a submarine cable.”
“The upward movement in fuel prices over the years has also added pressure on the electricity company’s determination to hold tariffs at current levels,” said GINA.
It noted that cuts to the budgetary allocation for the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project by the opposition political parties daunted the outlook for hydropower in Guyana but the Government remains hopeful that it will be made a reality with the goal of ending years of paying heavily for imported fuel.
