Chinese contractors dominate bids for Amaila Falls Hydro Project

May 09, 2026 News

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(Kaieteur News) – The Government of Guyana has received five bids from international contractors for the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project, three of which are Chinese companies.

The project which is being executed through the Office of the Prime Minister was opened at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) on Friday.

Kaieteur News understands that some companies bid either via consortium or joint venture. Out of the five bids, three are from China, while the other two are headquartered in the United States of America and India.

According to information released on NPTAB website the five bidders are Afcon Infrastructure Limited (of India) in joint venture with Scandian Infrastructure AB (of Sweden); CAMCE-CMEC Consortium (of China) who bid US$668,000,000; China Gezhouba Group Company Limited-HYI (of China) who bid US$432,338,377; OEC USA in joint venture with GE Vernova (of USA), and Worley (of Australia) who bid US$800,060,842; and Sinohydro Corporation Limited (of China) who bid US$416,866,949.21.

The government, in its revised Request for Proposals (RFP) which was issued earlier this year, stated that the hydro project will be done under a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) model, with a minimum installed capacity of 165 Mega Watt (MW).

In a summary of the scope of work, the RFP detailed that the project includes a 165 MW installed hydro dam, plant, and substation at Amaila site, and related works.

The project involves the creation of a 23 square KM storage reservoir consistent with the environmental reports and studies and prior permitting. Also interested parties would have to assume all geo-technical risks including guarantees relating to the structure of the reservoir and dam.

The government also stated that the transmission network will be built separately. “That the size of the hydro may be reengineered to take account of changes in turbine technology thus allowing more than 165 MW to be generated and transmitted,” the document stated.

The government noted that it will engage independent supervision of the design and construction, with an agreed Terms of Reference (TOR) between the parties.

Further, the RFP explained that the hydro project will be executed via a new “Special Purpose Company (SPC)” and will be issued with all previous permits, licences, and permissions, as previously existing in April 2015, provided the Developer shall have responsibility for any updates as required by law.

Under the BOOT arrangement, the Government of Guyana (GoG) will purchase the electricity from the private developer. As such, the RFP explained that government will select a suitable partner based on (i) lowest Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) price, Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) price, operating cost and capital amortisation; (ii) timeframes to complete and (iii) ability to finance the project on a PPA basis.

This publication had highlighted that since assuming office in 2020 under the first Irfaan Ali-led PPP administration, government tendered twice for a contractor for the project but both were unsuccessful in materialising.

The Amaila Falls Hydro project was introduced by a previous PPP/C Administration in 2011. However, the project faced obstacles in its realisation when the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC) Opposition parties, stopped the project back in 2014.

In its 2020 election manifesto, the PPP-administration noted that the project will be revived. However, to date the PPP government was unable to do so before the end of the first term in office.

In 2021, negotiations hit a stalemate after Cabinet granted a no-objection for the Prime Minister’s office to engage the China Railway Group Limited for construction. Discussions faltered as the company sought to alter the project’s model due to financing challenges for a BOOT model, requesting a shift to an EPC model. The government was reluctant to switch to the EPC option, resulting in the talks with the Chinese contractor coming to an end.

The government later issued a revised RFP under the BOOT model for the Amaila Falls project and four local and international firms submitted proposals for the Amaila Falls project that was scheduled to begin in 2027. However, this too was stalled.

Early in 2025, the government announced that it would once again go to tender for the project.

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• Amaila Falls Hydro project, Chinese contractors, Guyana and Chind, NPTAB

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