Construction has commenced on an $847M water treatment plant at Parika, East Bank Essequibo that will serve some 12,000 residents from Ruby, stretching all the way to St Lawrence when completed in 2024.
The project is being funded by the Government of Guyana and is undertaken by Toshiba Water Solutions Private Limited, an international multi-disciplinary environmental services company headquartered in India that specialises in providing turkey services in water and wastewater collection, treatment, and disposal.
Toshiba will also train workers of the Guyana Water Inc (GWI) to manage and operate the plant. The plant is expected to be completed in June 2024 and will have a capacity to supply some 4.5 million liters of treated water per day, bringing relief to thousands of residents within the communities it will serve. Some 40 Guyanese will be contracted to accelerate work in the initial phase of the project.
GWI Chief Executive Office, Shaik Baksh on an inspection visit to the work site on Friday, said he was pleased with the commencement of work on the treatment plant and urged the contractor to complete the project within the project deadline.
Toshiba Water Solutions Private Limited Director and Chief Executive Officer, Rajkumar Gupta said his company is committed to delivering a quality project to the Government and people of Guyana within the project deadline.
He also noted that Toshiba is extremely pleased to be associated with GWI and in the build of water infrastructure to enable the provision of water security in Guyana.
Apart from the treatment plant at Parika, six others are currently under construction.
These are at Onderneeming, Essequibo Coast; Parfaite Harmonie and Wales, West Bank Demerara; Caledonia and Bachelor’s Adventure, East Coast Demerara and Cummings Lodge, Greater Georgetown.
Work will also commence on a new water treatment plant at Charity, Essequibo Coast; Leguan, Region Three; Wakenaam, Region Three; Bath, Region Five and Adventure, Region Six before year end.
In addition, 12 existing treatment plants are being upgraded and work has started on the laying of transmission and distribution lines across the coastland.
These projects are part of the Coastal Water Treatment Project, which is geared at providing treated water to the population.
GWI is committed to providing treated water to 90 per cent of the population by 2025, and in support of this vision, the Government of Guyana in recent years has been investing billions of dollars annually in the sector.
Meanwhile, GWI has thus far achieved 97 per cent access to water and is actively working towards achieving full coverage by 2025.
