A US$40 million deepwater pipe coating facility was launched during a ceremony at the Guyana Marriott Hotel in Kingston, Georgetown on Wednesday evening, by Pipe Coating Guyana (PCG) Inc. The ceremony marks the operationalisation of a state-of-the-art facility purposed to provide pipe coating for offshore pipelines, giving support to the deepwater operations and the country’s landmark gas-to-energy project.
This company is managed by a group of Guyanese led by Suresh Jagmohan of S. Jagmohan Hardware Supplies & Construction Services. For the purposes of this project, they have teamed up with two world class companies, Wasco Coatings Ltd. and Patagonia Shale Services, which are minority owners in the project (49%), consistent with the Local Content Act which was passed in December.
Director of PCG, Narain Tulshi said the joint venture intends to be a major stakeholder in the oil and gas sector, due to the combination of the PCG leaders’ first-class experience in civil works and the international companies’ world class experience in pipe coating and thermal insulations.
Wasco is a Malaysian company that specialises in all types of pipe coatings, including anti corrosion and concrete weight. It also offers other services including logistics and anodes manufacturing.
Patagonia is an Argentinian company which provides products and services for the upstream oil and gas industry and specializes in thermal coating for oil and gas pipelines.
Pipe coating for Guyana’s largest offshore project planned for early 2023
Wasco’s International Business Development Director, Giancarlo Tocchio expects that coating of the pipes in Guyana will result in cost reductions. This was echoed by Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar, who explained how the status quo is more costly and tedious.
The operations, Tocchio explained, will be maintained in the vicinity of Guyana Shore Base Inc’s (GYSBI) operations at Houston on the East Bank of Demerara. They are in negotiations with GYSBI, he said, to establish a building there, as they intend to use the area for pipe storage. He noted, however, that the JV is prepared to move to the West side of the Demerara River with the establishment of an industrial area with direct access to the sea.
On the local content front, the employment benefit which could be derived from this project is significant. The joint venture is targeting the provision of 450 jobs.
Tulshi told OilNOW the aim is to ensure that within 5 years of commencement of operations, at least 90% of the workers are Guyanese.
