Fisheries company, Pritipaul Singh Investments is undergoing expansion works at its Providence, East Bank Demerara location in excess of US$75M and this will see the addition of a state-of-the-art facility with greater capacity.
“What’s happening at Providence, we have to consolidate Pritipaul Singh Investments; we are moving our operations as we have two locations. Instead of having two locations we are consolidating the business. Because what is happening in the world environment, because of economic situation, and to become more profitable it is wiser to consolidate the business and maximise our efficiency,” Chief Executive Officer of the Company Pritipaul Singh Snr stated, according to a release from the Office of the President yesterday.
He said too that the move will also create additional jobs. Singh was speaking during a tour of the facility yesterday by President Irfaan Ali.
Singh also expressed his appreciation to President Ali for his vision of expanding aquaculture in Guyana.
He said that the facility he is currently building at Providence has the capacity to take up the challenges of the sector.
“At the end of the day the people of Guyana must benefit from what we are doing here, I am happy to be onboard with the President”, Singh said.
The President and his team were taken on a guided tour of the two locations where he was able to see firsthand the stages of operations in the shrimp and fish processing plants.
“I thought it necessary today to come out and to visit one of our largest production facilities in terms of our fishery sector and the products they export. It was a delight and a great pleasure to visit Pritipaul Investments. What I’ve learned today is the magnitude of this investment, the size of the sector itself and opportunities that lies within the sector”, Ali said, according to the release.
He added: “I think that is necessary to appreciate what happens in the sector. I’m also very happy to hear of the long-term plans of Pritipaul Singh Investment, not only in wild catch, but looking at aquaculture. The number of persons employed here is enormous, his contribution to the economy definitely is very enormous without a doubt.”
Ali said that the Government is in the process of formulating an aquaculture masterplan which will form part of the country’s agriculture diversification programme.
“As you know, we are supposed to have a conference on aquaculture; so we are putting together the plans for an aquaculture masterplan and to identify one corridor. Right now we are looking at Region Five because they have all the right conditions for aquaculture… also we are looking at other areas as part of the diversified economy that we’re talking about”, the President stated.
During the site visit on Monday, President Ali used the opportunity to elaborate on particulars of the plan.
“So the plan is to build up aquaculture to increase our production, to increase volume, reduce cost … of course in another three years our energy costs will come down. But we are also looking at value added in the protein plant from natural gas to see how that can also support not only the livestock industry but the aquaculture industry”, he stated.
He pointed to the importance of finding a “synergy” in both the aquaculture and livestock industry.
“We have to look at the output of the livestock industry as an input to the aquaculture industry and to see how you can first of all build the capacity, increase the volume, get the market and then satisfy that capacity with local inputs. That is the master plan in a nutshell”, he revealed
He said that talks between Government and the livestock industry have uncovered a desire for them to diversify and enter into corn and soya production.
