Guyana’s Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo confirmed on Thursday that the administration still has its sights set on establishing a modular oil refinery. In fact, four strong contenders have been shortlisted, the official disclosed.
During a press conference, the chief policy maker for the oil sector stated that the Ministry of Natural Resources had set up a team to do a spreadsheet on all the proposals received. “There were about 11 and these were narrowed down to four that met all the parameters we requested in the Request For Proposal (RFP). That now needs to move to the next stage, which is to rank these, and then start the discussions with the number one ranked firm and see if we can reach an agreement,” the Vice President shared.
Guyana intent on having its own refinery | OilNOW
The official did not disclose the names of the companies shortlisted or their place of origin.
Government’s RFP had outlined the need for a suitably qualified company to design, finance, and construct a modular refinery which would be located at the mouth of the Berbice River in the vicinity of ‘Crab Island’. Construction was initially envisioned for the first quarter of 2023 with project completion no later than two years after the start date.
In addition to providing an estimated 30 acres of land, the government had said it will offer generous fiscal incentives for the project including a 10-year tax holiday, supply of feedstock (oil) from the Guyana government’s share of profit oil at market prices; and access to the domestic market for the sale of refined products (if desired).
The RFP also explicitly stated that the government will not have any ownership or investment interest in the project. Government had also said the refinery is purely for national security reasons.
