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Guyana INDUSTRY
Energy Supply
The lack of a reliable supply of electricity in Guyana,
especially in Georgetown, was the most severe constraint on
economic activity and a major factor in emigration. By 1990
blackouts of sixteen hours per day were common in the capital city,
affecting even the presidential mansion. Blackouts occurred without
warning and sometimes lasted for several days. Most businesses in
Georgetown employed standby generators, raising the demand for
imported fuel.
The electricity supply was unreliable because the facilities of
the state-owned Guyana Electricity Corporation (GEC) had
deteriorated during the 1980s. In 1991 the GEC had a capacity of
253 megawatts of electricity and generated 647 gigawatt-hours of
electricity, satisfying about half the estimated demand. The
reasons for the shortfall were not only the lack of funds to
replace aging generators and to build new power plants, but also
periodic fuel shortages because most electrical power was produced
thermally. There were other less tangible problems: GEC's finances
were inadequate because the cost of electricity was below the cost
of production (especially when taking depreciation into account);
and the attitude of managers and workers was reportedly very poor.
The bauxite and sugar sectors had their own electricity supply
system apart from the GEC, but they also suffered power shortages.
Two types of efforts were under way in the early 1990s to
rectify the electricity shortage. In the short term, GEC was
limping along with the help of a small floating generator made in
the United States and two ten-megawatt gas-turbine generators
borrowed from Brazil. There was also a possibility that electricity
would be bought from neighboring Venezuela.
In the longer term, the government was trying to obtain foreign
investment and assistance to rebuild the electrical system. GEC
planned to hire a consulting firm to help it develop a least-cost
expansion program and to improve the pricing of electrical service.
International financial organizations were also expected to
contribute funds. As early as 1985, the Inter-American Development
Bank (IDB) had approved a US$16 million loan for rehabilitation of
GEC, and an agreement was reached with an Italian company to build
a US$45 million (thirty-megawatt) power station. Both projects were
delayed, as were plans to build a hydroelectric plant on the
Mazaruni River. The Economist Intelligence Unit reported that GEC
rehabilitation still had not started in mid-1990. In 1990
negotiations were under way with the United States firm, Leucadia,
to form a joint-venture company for the operation of the electrical
system.
Data as of January 1992
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