US$1.9B contract awarded to American firm to map Guyana’s mineral

Aug 16, 2024 News

Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat

Kaieteur News – The Government of Guyana (GoG), through the Ministry of Natural Resources, has signed a US$1.9 billion contract with United States-based firm Global Venture Consulting to conduct a comprehensive mineral mapping of the nation’s mining hotspots.

The announcement was made by Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, during his mid-year press conference on Wednesday.  The ministry had issued a tender for the “Mineral Mapping Study of Guyana’s Mineral Resources,” targeting both traditional gold reserves and emerging non-traditional minerals. The process attracted proposals from five international companies, including Canada’s Watts, Griffis & McOuat Limited (WGM), which bid US$1,301,700 and GY$88,088,000, and Technical Management Group Limited (TMG) in partnership with Purple Rock Inc., which submitted a bid totaling US$2,806,686. Additionally, the UK’s SLR Consulting Limited bid £156,976 (excluding all fees and expenses), while Oculus Geophysical Resources, also of the USA, submitted a bid for US$1,556,500. However, Global Venture Consulting’s bid of US$1,981,218 was ultimately selected.

For his part, Minister Bharrat highlighted the importance of updating Guyana’s mineral inventory, noting that the existing data is severely outdated.

In mining, the mineral inventory, or mineral mapping, has not been updated for decades. So today, if we point a miner in a direction and say that there is mineral there, that data is old data that was that would have been acquired maybe 40, 50 years ago, and a lot has changed from now to then,” Bharrat stated.

He underscored that advances in technology have significantly improved mineral discovery methods. “Simply the use of different technology, more advanced technology, in the survey, and the discovery of minerals by way of doing these surveys using technology that would have changed from then…,” the minister explained. Bharrat also addressed why such a project had not been undertaken sooner, suggesting that cost had been a major factor. However, he noted that the country is now in a better position to move forward with this critical initiative, especially given its commitment to the Low Carbon Development Strategy.

He said, “It is important and is necessary that we start the mineral inventory process in Guyana this year.”  The mineral mapping project is expected to be a multi-year endeavor, initially focusing on the Mazaruni, Potaro, Northwest, and Cuyuni mining districts, which are home to a significant concentration of small and medium-scale miners.

“We will start with specific mining districts… because we have a larger amount of our small miners and major scale miners concentrated in those four mining districts,” Bharrat said. Moreover, he stated that the project is not only about identifying existing mineral deposits but also about positioning Guyana to tap into the global demand for critical minerals, particularly those needed for renewable energy technologies.

“So this is a project that will help us significantly to identify not only where our deposits are, but all minerals, and you know, in keeping with what is happening around the world, especially in the transitioning phase from fossil to renewable, critical minerals are critical. Critical minerals are needed. They are heavily in demand,” Bharrat outlined.  He pointed out the global interest in minerals such as lithium, especially in South America, and suggested that Guyana could potentially have traces of these valuable resources.  So this project is going to help us to identify all of these minerals in that we have. So, it will help us in the allocation of properties, and to ensure that we see a general forest,” the minister concluded.

• American, Guyana, mineral, Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat