The $30B syndicated bond that was controversially arranged by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) under the former APNU+AFC Administration for the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) has been exhausted.
This was revealed today by Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha while responding to questions from the parliamentary opposition during the examination of the budget 2022 estimates for his Ministry.
Opposition Member of Parliament Tabitha Sarabo-Halley questioned the status of the GuySuCo bond which was arranged in 2018.
In response, Mustapha revealed that the funds have been exhausted and that only $3.8B was remaining when the PPP/C Administration assumed office in August 2020.
“That money started to use under the former Government, which GuySuCo has to pay it back. That bond has been exhausted. And that is why we were forced to give subsidies to GuySuCo, to continue the investment into GuySuCo,” he explained.
“I can’t say what the bond was exhausted on… however, some money was used from the bond to do some work in GuySuCo. I don’t have the details here. I will lay it over. Over the last 18 months, the bond was exhausted… when we took office, $3.8B was remaining out of the $30B,” the Minister added.
In June 2021, it was revealed that a whopping $606M in interest payments were made so far on the bond.
At the time, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh lamented that “this bond was concluded at an exorbitant interest rate of 4.75 per cent, considering it was backed by a Government guarantee and they locked in that interest rate with a penalty clause for early repayment.”
The bond, which was heavily criticised by the then PPP/C Opposition, was intended to recapitalise GuySuCo and return it to viability after the former APNU/AFC Government had shut down four estates and placed thousands of sugar workers on the breadline.
