Raising the country’s external debt ceiling to $150B from $1B is not a requirement of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) before it provides financing to construct the Amaila Falls Hydropower plant.This was revealed by leader of the Alliance For Change (AFC) Khemraj Ramjattan at a press conference yesterday. He noted that members of the AFC met with officials from the Bank on Wednesday.Khemraj RamjattanAccording to Ramjattan, Government wants the National Assembly to approve the guarantee ceiling to $150B on the premise that this is what the investors and the IDB would like to see in place.In early June, it was reported that Government was looking to increase the limit on total guarantees that can be issued under the Guarantee of Loans (Public Corporations and Companies) Act.The new proposed limit is $150B (US$750M) and according to the Ministry of Finance, the increase in the guarantee limit follows on the commitment to the Amaila Falls Hydroelectric Project, which is estimated to cost US$840M.The increase seeks to guarantee that Guyana Power and Light (GPL) honours its financial commitments under the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) to be entered into between the power company and Amaila Falls Hydro Inc (AFHI).Under the Power Purchase Agreement, GPL commits to purchase the power from Amaila Falls for an average annual capacity payment.The IDB, one of the main lenders of the project, is carrying out a technical review.According to Ramjattan, the IDB never requested Government to raise the guarantee ceiling. “They indicated that in relation to the Hydro Electric Amendment Bill they would like to see the environmental aspects passed,” he added.The politician said that the Amaila Falls project is a BOOT arrangement and the private sector should take the risks and share the cost.The Amaila Falls Hydropower consortium has taken out insurance worth US$100M that increased the price significantly. “So,Asics Dynaflyte 2 Womens, if the whole thing collapses that insurance company must pay Sithe Global or whosoever and not we who upping the guarantee ceiling from $1B to $150B.”Ramjattan said if the IDB does not come through on this project even if the guarantee is in place, Government would be equipped with a blank cheque to borrow money from anywhere.
