Students of the University of Guyana’s Faculty of Technology were this week exposed to reclamation and construction engineering techniques used to create the artificial island in the Demerara River and the shore base at Vreed-en-Hoop.
The students’ visit was in keeping with the Vreed-en-Hoop Shorebase Inc. (VEHSI) commitment to help increase the technical capacity of Guyanese. While at the site, the students engaged the construction team on the ground by querying the various techniques, reasons for employing those techniques and the preferences of one material or method over the other, among other pertinent engineering questions about the facility and its construction, a release from VEHSI said. The construction team also explained the project’s rigorous construction schedule, environmental compliance and answered questions about qualifications and experience needed to be part of this type of construction project.
The facility is now connected by road to the coast while the construction pace continues 24 hours daily. The projected shore base construction will see the first phase of 10 acres made operational by December 2023, with additional acreages delivered by the second quarter of 2024. The long-term vision of the project will see the full Port of Vreed-en-Hoop completed with as much as 800 acres of port facilities. Director of VEHSI, Nicholas Deygoo-Boyer explained that “once fully realised, the Port of Vreed-en-Hoop will tie into the country’s vision to expand Guyana’s development.” He noted that there is space for expansion and VEHSI can facilitate other shore base projects thereby making the need for foreign bases to support operations in Guyana unnecessary.
VEHSI also praised the support it has received from the Government, noting that without the rapid pace of responses and the outpouring of support, the project could not have proceeded at such an accelerated pace. The company said it recognises the rapid speed at which President Irfaan Ali responded to the project’s development plans and the support in helping the company to build out its world class facility.
VEHSI is currently the largest Guyanese private sector investment in the oil and gas sector and the shore base is expected to cost over US$300 Million. VEHSI is a joint venture between NRG Holdings Inc., a 100 percent Guyanese-owned consortium, and Jan De Nul, an international maritime infrastructure company headquartered in Luxembourg.
