Georgetown: The Office of the Prime Minister has announced that Government has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese Company to undertake a Feasibility Study into the construction of a Deep-Water Harbour at the mouth of the Berbice River. The announcement came by way of a public missive, and detailed that Mr Zhile (David) Zhang, Chief Representative of the Overseas Operations of China State Construction Engineering Company Ltd in the Latin American and Caribbean Region will be in Guyana this week to follow-up on the MoU.
According to the announcement by the Prime Minister’s Office, Mr. Zhang will be followed by a technical team from his company, which will carry out the Preliminary Study, at the company’s expense and without any obligations on the part of the Government.
It was observed in Prime Minister Hinds’ statement, that over the years, there have been a number of interests in a Deep-Water Port in Guyana.
A number of Preliminary Studies/proposals were put to Government by Boskalis, a team sent by the Government of India and Oldendorff (the Germany-based shipping and barging company contracted to the Berbice bauxite operations, BCGI/RUSAL).
“During the recent visits of the President of China to CARICOM and the subsequent BRICS meeting in Brazil, there were announcements that China had committed large funds for infrastructure development in the Caribbean, Central and South American area. Chinese firms, aware of this financing and always on the search for new business opportunities (like all businesses) have been proposing to be partners in desired economic developments…The desired deep water harbour in Guyana is one such.”
According to the PM’s statement, “Government at this time is welcoming and facilitating offers to carry out and present Preliminary Studies/Proposals at no costs to and no obligations on the part of the Government.”
It advised too that a team from Dalian Port Corporation visited Guyana during the week of 15th September, 2014 and Prime Minister Hinds led a team on a return visit to Dalian over 10th to 13th October, 2014.
According to Hinds, “It may be recalled that in the mid-1990s, the Aroaima Operations of Reynold’s (ABC/AMC) Bauxite Operations constructed a Deep-Water Shipping Facility at the mouth of the Berbice River, which facility could have been seen as the first step towards a traditional PANAMAX (65,000-ton) sized port.”
The Government has advised that if a Deep-Water Port on a Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) basis was to appear to be feasible, Government at that stage would proceed by way of an open invitation for proposals.
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