The government expects the first gas turbine under its gas-to-energy project at Wales to begin generating electricity by December, with the remaining units to be commissioned in stages over the following months.
Speaking on the Starting Point Podcast on Sunday, Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation Deodat Indar said the first 57-megawatt Siemens gas turbine is scheduled to come online later this year under the revised contract.
He said three additional gas turbines are expected to be commissioned roughly three months later, taking gas-fired generation to 228 megawatts. Two steam turbines are then expected to follow, increasing the plant’s total generating capacity to 300 megawatts.
Indar said the project is expected to lower the cost of electricity generation by replacing imported heavy fuel oil with natural gas.
To support the new power plant, government has invested more than US$722 million in transmission lines, substations and other upgrades to the national grid. These works include a new 230-kilovolt transmission network, upgraded substations and a national control centre aimed at improving the reliability of electricity across the coast.
The minister said consumers should benefit from a more stable electricity supply once the project is operational, noting that the Siemens turbines can recover more quickly from system disturbances than GPL’s existing engines.
He acknowledged that some temporary power outages will continue while Guyana Power and Light carries out upgrades and transfers customers onto the new infrastructure, but said the work is necessary to modernise the country’s electricity network.
