Progress is being made on the Gas-to-Shore project, with 13 companies applying for prequalification for the construction of the natural gas-fired power plant and the natural gas liquids plant components of the project.
During last Thursday’s bid opening at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB), it was recorded that 12 bids from local, regional and international firms were received.
Among the companies whose Expressions of Interest were deemed acceptable enough to now enter the prequalification, were CH4 Guyana Incorporated in collaboration with Lindsayca Incorporated, a Texas-based company.
Power China International Group Limited, a company that specialises in hydropower and electrical infrastructure, were also deemed acceptable, as well as China Energy International Guyana Company Limited. China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC).
Other companies include Apan Energy, Wilson Offshore and Marine Limited, Constutora Queiroz Galvao, Tecnicas Reunidas, Black and Veatch, Amerapex Corporation (USA), SEPCOII Electric Power and Trinidadian company NGC Group.
The rationale for the combination of the power plant and the NGL facilities is guided by findings by Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) – the local subsidiary of ExxonMobil – that there will be substantial savings from combining these two facilities.
As such, notwithstanding that the Government of Guyana has separately received Expressions of Interest in September 2021 that included the power plant, and that EEPGL had separately pre-qualified firms for the NGL plant, the decision to combine the power and NGL plants necessitated that all interest parties be invited to submit or re-submit information.
Broad project scope
According to the Ministry of Natural Resources, the following are listed as the scope of the project:
* Combine cycle turbines, multiple fuel consumption (including rich and lean natural gas, natural gas liquids and diesel); power plant to generate up to 300 MW of power with net 250 MW delivered into the Guyana Power and Light grid at a sub-station located on the East Bank of the Demerara River. The project shall include a 230 KV substation and back up fuel capacity;
* NGL plant with the capacity to process 60 thousand cubic feet per day (MCFD) in the first phase and up to 120 MCFD in the second phase, capable of conditioning the gas and removing heavier hydrocarbons in the liquid form. Five-day storage for these products to be provided as well as truck or river loading facilities;
* The project will include related infrastructure and civil works for the above facilities.
The project will be located in the Hermitage, part of the Wales Development Zone with approximately 150 acres allocated for it.
Notably, the Government has invited interested parties to invest in its US$900 million gas-to-energy project Wales Development Zone (WDZ). A public notice from the Natural Resources Ministry states the WDZ was selected as the landing facility for the pipeline, following the consideration of more than 20 potential locations.
The pipeline, which would end in the WDZ, will measure some 225 km from the Liza area, where the natural gas is produced.
The project will see the establishment of a gas processing plant (GPP) and a natural gas liquids (NGL) facility, capable of producing at least 4000 barrels per day, including the fractionation (or separating out) of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
The Government said a power plant will be established to generate 150 MW, with an additional 150 MW in a second phase, and that an industrial park will be established to comprise industries that could use gas, steam and/or electricity.
ExxonMobil’s local affiliate, Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL), has guaranteed the Government a minimum of 50 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd) will be transported through the pipeline by 2024. The pipeline will have a maximum capacity of 130 mmscfd.
The gas-to-energy project which is expected to come on stream by late 2024, is expected to reduce Guyana’s energy sector emissions. The project will also cut electricity cost by more than half. The cost has long been regarded by the Private Sector as prohibitive to investments. Hence, Government expects the gas-to-energy project to revolutionise to significantly improve the ease of doing business in Guyana.
