Monitoring secretariat to be set up for Amaila project

Georgetown : Subsequent to the recent signing of the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) agreement by Sithe Global and China Railway First Group (CRFG) in Xian, China, further undertakings are being been made to consolidate this achievement.

Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon at his weekly post-Cabinet press briefing at the Office of the President said that the boards of the major stakeholders, the Chinese Development Bank (CDB) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), will be meeting shortly to consider their agreements and expectations.

Meanwhile, in Guyana, a monitoring secretariat is being been established to bring together the major domestic players. This unit is chaired by President Donald Ramotar himself and is given administrative support from the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL).

The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) is a player in this project as it is the largest investment of its kind in the history of Guyana and, especially in light of the fact that, hundreds of millions of US dollars in imports will be arriving by sea and having to be cleared and transported to the site at Amaila Falls.

Additionally the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC) and security organisations all have an equally important role to play.

These responsibilities Dr Luncheon said would have to be properly networked so as to ensure that they are on the ball and that they continue offering their sustained service at the end of the planned 36 months.

The Amaila Hydropower project is one of the largest Chinese investments in the Caribbean and is the largest ever infrastructural contract ever executed in Guyana.

The signing of the EPC signals an important milestone in the development of the US$840M project which is expected to start by mid 2013.