The Guyana government allocated US$245 million (GY$51 billion) for the Gas-to-Energy project in its 2025 budget. The landmark project will use offshore natural gas for power generation, reducing emissions and giving the government the fiscal space to slash consumer rates by 50%.
The budgeted funds will cover the remaining expenses before project completion later this year. This includes more than US$71 million (GY$15 billion) in government funding and US$174 million (GY$36 billion) in foreign financing from a United States Export-Import Bank loan. The bank signed the loan agreement in January, to the tune of US$526 million (GY$110 billion).
The government was funding the project from the treasury while it awaited the bank’s approval for the loan. Total pre-2025 government expenditure for the project was US$855 million (GY$178 billion), according to a budget document.
Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had said that part of the loan would fund the project retroactively, accounting for imports from the United States. Therefore, the unallocated portion of the loan is expected to be returned to the treasury.
The total cost of the Gas-to-Energy project is US$1.1 billion (GY$229 billion). This includes the construction of the natural gas-fired power plant and natural gas liquids (NGL) plant at Wales, upgrading of the transmission network, construction of a control center, project management consultancy and supervision.
The plants are being constructed by LNDCH4 Guyana, a joint venture involving Lindsayca, a Texas-based company and CH4 Systems, a Puerto Rican small business. Their contract is valued at US$759 million. However, disagreements between the contractor and the Guyana government could result in added costs, pending the outcome of arbitration.
ExxonMobil finished installing a pipeline in 2024, connecting the offshore Liza field to the site of the facility that will host the plants at Wales.
Guyana grapples with unreliable, costly power.
A major promise in the Irfaan Ali government’s 2020 election manifesto, there is eagerness for the Gas-to-Energy project to be completed ahead of the November 2025 election. The government states that the project will be the most transformative in Guyana’s history. Read more HERE.
