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Gov’t eyeing another US$1.5B loan from US-Exim Bank
Kaieteur News- The Government of Guyana is prepared to access an additional US$1.5 billion in financing from the United States Export-Import (US-Exim) Bank, according to Senior Minister with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh.
This announcement was made during the signing ceremony of a US$527 million loan agreement with the US-Exim Bank for the Gas-to-Energy (GTE) project on Friday.
Highlighting the collaboration between Guyana and the Bank, Dr. Singh described the relationship as entering a new phase of economic, trade, and commercial significance. “This represents a good example of what can be achieved, and we want to see much more business with Exim. We want to see big, medium, and small-sized projects. Guyana is open for business…” Dr. Singh remarked.
Senior Minister with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh.
He added, “We want to see more American companies investing in Guyana, doing business with Guyana, and in Guyana. Exim has an important role in this.”
Notably, the US-Exim Bank had committed a total of US$2 billion in financing for projects in Guyana, with US$527 million now allocated to the GTE project. Dr. Singh underscored the government’s readiness to utilize the remaining US$1.5 billion to further advance development initiatives.
“There is still US$1.5 billion and we are looking forward to taking up all of that loan,” Dr. Singh stated, signaling the government’s intent to continue strengthening its partnership with the US-Exim Bank.
Dr. Singh lauded the swift progress of the collaboration between Guyana and the US-Exim Bank. He reflected on the journey since the initial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed in 2022, which set the stage for the US$2 billion financing arrangement. “Moving from zero to half a billion in two and a half years really is a remarkable achievement,” he noted.
In relation to the loan signed for the GTE project, Vice President (VP) Bharrat Jagdeo recently during his weekly press conference at Freedom House, Georgetown explained that there is a fixed 4% annual interest rate on the loan which would be repaid over a period of 15 years.
He said the country will be required to make two annual payments on November 1 and May 1, commencing on May 1, 2031.
“The interest rate is 4% so if you calculate it over the period, but remember there are moratoriums and all of that so it’s a 4% interest and you can calculate what the repayment would be over a time period. It’s fixed at 4%…principal repayment is 30 semi-annual installments…so it’s 15 years thereafter,” the VP explained.
Notably, this publication had reported that Guyana’s total debt has risen sharply, exceeding US$5 billion by mid-2024, according to the Ministry of Finance’s Mid-Year Report.
As of June 2024, the country’s debt stood at US$5,063.3 million, up from US$4,508.8 million at the end of December 2023.
(Gov’t eyeing another US$1.5B loan from US-Exim Bank)
- American companies, Dr. Ashni Singh, gas-to-energy, Government of Guyana, United States Export-Import (US-Exim) Bank
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