Director of the Vreed-en-Hoop Shore Base Inc. (VEHSI) Nicholas Deygoo-Boyer remains confident of the company’s ability to deliver a fully operational shore base to Stabroek Block operator ExxonMobil Guyana come December 2023.
Vreed-en-Hoop Shore base Inc. is a joint venture between NRG Holdings Inc.—a 100% Guyanese-owned consortium that is the majority shareholder – and Jan De Nul, an international maritime infrastructure company headquartered in Luxembourg.
Boyer, in his presentation at the International Energy Conference, reported that the first phase of 10 acres remains on track to be completed and to be made operational by December 2023, with an additional 10 acres by July 2024 and the remainder in December 2024.
“Once fully realised, the Port of Vreed-en-Hoop will tie into the country’s vision to expand Guyana’s development,” Boyer noted.
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With space for expansion, Boyer explained that VEHSI can facilitate other shore base builds, eliminating the need for foreign bases to support operations in Guyana.
VEHSI’s vision is to deliver to Guyana “deep maritime accessibility” and added benefit of reduced shipping costs by as much as 12%.
Boyer said that works on the artificial island is being executed around the clock. The new island is part of reclaimed land that will be transformed into the estimated 44-acre mega-project to create the shore base facility, which will form part of the Port of Vreed-en-Hoop.
The long-term vision of the project will eventually see the full Port of Vreed-en-Hoop completed with as much as 800 acres of port facilities.
NRG Holdings recently completed the dredging phase of its project with the draft of the Demerara channel increased to nine metres. It also widened the channel by more than 60% and also lengthened the channel by five miles in the Northwest direction.
More importantly, NRG said all wrecks have been removed from the channel, making it easier for larger vessels to traverse.
