The Government of Guyana and Turkish powership operator Karpowership remain locked in negotiations over a proposed rate increase that could cost taxpayers an additional US$5.8 million annually, despite a June 1 deadline set by the company having already passed without resolution.
Public Utilities Minister Deodat Indar confirmed to Kaieteur News on Saturday that government has submitted a counteroffer and is awaiting the company’s response. “The contract is up for renewal and during this period we are still negotiating. The government has put forward a counteroffer and we are currently under negotiations as of now,” he stated.
Karpowership, operating through Karadeniz Powership Yasin Bey Company Limited and Urbacon Concessions Investments, is demanding a new rate of US$0.95 cents per kilowatt from Guyana, up from the previous concessional rate of US$0.076 per kilowatt secured when Guyana became one of the company’s first clients approximately two years ago. The increase translates to an additional US$3.4 million per day drawn from the national purse, pushing the annual bill for the single vessel supplying 36 megawatts to the national grid from US$23 million to approximately US$28.7 million.
In a joint letter dated May 25, 2026, the operators warned that alignment of commercial terms across all country operations remained an essential requirement for continuation of the arrangement, concluding with a thinly veiled threat that they trusted the matter would be resolved to avoid any interruption to operations.
Minister Indar sought to reassure the public, stating that the government maintains seriousness in the negotiations and is working to secure the best commercial rate possible. He noted that billing is done on a monthly basis, with the last bill issued on May 21, and expressed confidence that an agreement could be reached before the next billing cycle.
Guyana’s dependence on rented electricity stems directly from the continued delays to the Wales Gas-to-Energy project, which missed its original 2024 completion deadline and is now expected to come online by the end of 2026.
The financial consequences of that delay are compounding rapidly. This publication previously reported that the two-year overrun is projected to cost the nation an additional US$884 million, factoring in the rising import bill for Heavy Fuel Oil, powership rental costs, and an ongoing legal dispute with the project contractor, Lindsayca and CH4.
What this negotiation lays bare is the vulnerability that comes with infrastructure failure at a national scale. Guyana is not bargaining from a position of strength. With Wales unfinished and no alternative power source available at scale, the government has little leverage against a supplier that knows the country cannot simply walk away. Every month the GTE project remains incomplete, that leverage weakens further.
The arithmetic is also worth examining. The Wales project was originally pegged at US$759 million. The cumulative cost of the delay, including powership rentals, fuel imports, legal disputes, and now a threatened rate increase, is approaching and may ultimately exceed that figure on its own. Guyanese taxpayers are effectively paying for the Wales plant twice: once to build it, and again because it was not built on time.
There is a broader accountability question that parliament and civil society must press. Who bears responsibility for the procurement decisions, contract management failures, and oversight gaps that placed the country in this position? The negotiation with Karpowership is a symptom. The disease is the institutional failure that made Guyana dependent on rented power in the first place.
SOURCE: Kaieteur News, “No deal yet on $3.4M daily powership demand,” June 7, 2026
