President Ali, VP Jagdeo discuss Berbice deepwater port with President Ali, VP Jagdeo discuss Berbice deepwater port with CGX, investors
Kaieteur News – The construction of a deepwater harbour in Berbice is currently engaging the attention of Head of State, President, Irfaan Ali, Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo, and Canadian oil company, CGX Guyana, along with investors.
This is according to Minister within the Ministry of Public Works with responsibility for the Energy Sector, Deodat Indar, in a live broadcast interview on Monday, facilitated by Globespan24X7.
“The deepwater harbour…” according to Indar, who reminded that “the deepwater harbour is supposed to go to Berbice because the draft [is] there, the land is there, it can serve two markets – Guyana market and the Suriname market.”
He was at the time discussing infrastructure projects in Guyana in light of its emerging oil and gas sector and told moderators, Dr. Asquith Rose and Charles Sugrim, “there are persons, there are operators who have land in the Crab Island area and so that have serious discussion at the level of the President and Vice-President concerning that project.”
He was adamant “that project is something that is alive every day because we want to make sure that we benefit from it.”
The government Minister qualified his position further by reminding that “we don’t have the deepwater harbour, (and) most of the services are emanating out of Trinidad and all the tail end services for the oil and gas sector are done in Trinidad and we get a part of it only and it’s because of the absence of a deepwater harbour.”
He lamented too, that because of the size of the ships that are required to move to and from Guyana, “cargo ships as well as ones in the oil and gas sector, the draft that we have in the Demerara cannot accommodate those ships so it is needed for our country’s transformation and development and we all in the Irfaan Ali government understand that.”
Government in its most recent pronouncements had also noted that considerations are being made as to the possibilities of a Public/Private Partnership or will be a “BOOT arrangement.”
BOOT arrangements refer to a build–own–operate–transfer type agreement. This is where a private entity receives a concession to design, fund and construct a facility and operate it. When the private party recovers their investment and returns, the facility can then be transferred to the government.
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic government had, as part of its manifesto promises on the election campaign, committed to the construction of the facility. Upon assuming office, President Irfaan Ali said the country would be prioritising waterfront developments to make provisions for the increasing marine traffic from the offshore oil and gas operations.
CGX Energy Inc. had announced that it will be forging ahead with plans to construct a deep water port on the eastern bank of the Berbice River to meet the demands of the oil and gas operations in both Guyana and Suriname.
CGX Energy Inc. through its wholly owned subsidiary Grand Canal Industrial Estates Inc. (GCIEI) has already made a request for proposals for the provision of infrastructure services as part of the construction of a deep-water port facility at Crab Island in the Berbice River in the South American country of Guyana.
Eligible and qualified contractors had been invited to bid for the construction of a wharf platform and approach trestle; for the resurfacing of road and access way to the port site; and for the construction of two bridges. The facility when completed is expected to support the offshore exploration work of CGX and its partners in the Corentyne Block offshore Guyana.
The CGX deepwater harbour is proposed to be about 600 meters at the mouth of the Berbice River. According to the Guyana Office for Investment’s (GO-Invest) website, it is estimated that the port will be some 10 kilometers from the open Atlantic Ocean, making it easier to facilitate international trade.