GUYANA · ENERGY
Key Facts
- The country Guyana is an English-speaking South American country whose offshore oil, led by US major ExxonMobil, has made it one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Its state power grid still suffers outages and leans on two rented Turkish powerships.
- Why it matters Reliable electricity underpins the oil boom that US companies lead, and an untendered fuel award would raise a transparency question for investors and for Guyanese families in the United States.
- Why now The claim surfaced on Friday 30 October 2026, as the opposition was already demanding that powership contracts be made public and talk of a third vessel arriving in December was circulating.
- What happened Fuel supply contracts for Guyana’s two rented powerships were allegedly awarded to the energy trader BB Energy without a public tender, which would bypass the national tender board. The government has not confirmed or denied the award.
- What it means for you Investors and contractors should expect pressure for published contracts and open bidding, while residents and visitors on the coast should expect outage risk until new generation arrives.
- Still open The contract value, length, legal route and any government response are not public.
In Plain English
A powership is a floating power plant that a country rents and plugs into its grid, and Guyana rents two from the Turkish company Karpowership. GPL, short for Guyana Power and Light, is the state utility that buys the electricity.
NPTAB, the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board, runs Guyana’s state tender system and keeps the register of contractors and suppliers. Heavy Fuel Oil, or HFO, is a thick fuel burned in large engines such as those on the powerships.
Guyana’s government has awarded the fuel supply contracts for its two rented powerships to BB Energy without a public tender, Kaieteur News alleged on Friday 30 October 2026, citing industry and government sources. The newspaper said the award effectively bypassed the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board, the state body that runs Guyana’s tender system.
No government confirmation or denial had appeared in the Guyanese government, newspaper or wire pages reviewed by Saturday morning 31 October, and no contract value was published. The allegation arrives while the delayed Wales Gas-to-Energy project has still to deliver power and while the opposition demands that powership deals be published.
What the Newspaper Alleges
Kaieteur News wrote that the Heavy Fuel Oil supply contracts went to BB Energy, a company it says is controlled by Lebanon’s Bassatne family. The paper did not publish a contract, an award date or a price, and it relied on unnamed sources.
The two vessels are a 36-megawatt ship on the Berbice River and a 60-megawatt ship on the Demerara River, both rented from Karpowership. The newspaper added that a third, larger vessel is likely to replace the two existing ships, a plan the government has not detailed.
Who BB Energy Is
BB Energy describes itself on its website as “a global energy company” that trades and distributes energy, with divisions in trading, downstream and renewables. Its listed offices are in the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Belgium, Switzerland and the United States, where BB Energy USA LLC is based in Houston, Texas.
Kaieteur News also recounted that BB Energy was linked to a Lebanese fuel-import arrangement that Lebanese judges have investigated, and to a London court dispute in which BB Energy is the lender seeking repayment of a US$100 million crude oil prepayment from South Sudan. Those background claims come from Kaieteur News and the outlets it cites, BB Energy has not published a response, and its homepage does not mention Guyana.
How the Powership Deals Work
GPL buys power from the ships under a contract with a joint venture called UCC JV and Karpowership, Public Utilities Minister Deodat Indar said in a statement on 4 June 2026. On 1 July 2026 Indar said the Berbice ship’s new two-year agreement prices power at 9.5 US cents per kilowatt hour, up from 7.2 US cents when it was signed in 2024.
Indar also said the electricity agreement excludes fuel because the government buys the fuel itself at zero tax, which makes the fuel a separate state purchase. President Irfaan Ali said the talks were “completed at the same rate” as for the second ship, which already sells power at 9.5 US cents.
Why the Tender Board Matters
NPTAB keeps the register of contractors, suppliers and consultants who do business with the state. On 18 August 2026 President Ali said its e-tender module would digitise the full process from tender creation through bid submission, evaluation and contract award.
Ali said the aim was a system “trackable throughout the process”, with the rollout targeted before the end of 2026. Whether the fuel contracts passed through NPTAB or used another legal route has not been stated by the government.
Opposition Demands Open Contracts
Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed said at a press conference on Monday 26 October that the government must share details of a third powership. He asked who was supplying the fuel and whether officials were getting “a cutback”, though no evidence for that suggestion has been published.
Former minister Annette Ferguson wrote in a letter to the editor that the government should publish all powership rental contracts, and asked whether the revised agreement was “competitively assessed”. Mohamed was remanded to prison on Friday 30 October until 24 November on a separate cybercrime charge over leaked CCTV footage, and his lawyer Roysdale Forde said bail applications would follow.
What It Means for You
Businesses and residents on the coast of Guyana, including US-based Guyanese visiting family, face a grid that Ali said on Monday 14 September has “absolutely no spinning reserve”, so blackouts remain possible. Spinning reserve is spare generating capacity that can be called on at once if a unit fails.
Investors and suppliers bidding for state work in Guyana’s oil boom should note that open tendering through NPTAB is the stated rule and that the opposition now wants the powership contracts published. The next evidence will be any statement from the Ministry of Public Utilities and Aviation, the arrival of the third powership expected in December and the delivery date for the Wales gas plant.
What Is Not Known
The value, length and award date of the fuel contracts are not public, and the government has not said whether the award used NPTAB or an exemption. BB Energy had not commented publicly on the award in the sources reviewed by Saturday morning 31 October.
The size, cost and arrival date of the third powership are not confirmed by the government, and Kaieteur News relies on unnamed sources for them. The newspaper’s background claims about BB Energy, which concern Lebanon and a London court case, do not show how the Guyana contracts were awarded.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who got Guyana’s powership fuel contract?
Kaieteur News alleged on 30 October 2026 that BB Energy, a global energy trader, received the fuel supply contracts for the two rented powerships. The government has not confirmed the award.
Was the powership fuel contract put to public tender?
Kaieteur News, citing industry and government sources, said it was not and that the national tender board was bypassed. No government statement on the claim had been found by 31 October.
How many powerships does Guyana rent?
Guyana rents two Karpowership vessels, a 36-megawatt ship on the Berbice River and a 60-megawatt ship on the Demerara River. Kaieteur News says a third, larger ship is expected in December.
What does Guyana pay for powership electricity?
Minister Deodat Indar said on 1 July 2026 that the Berbice ship’s new two-year deal is priced at 9.5 US cents per kilowatt hour, up from 7.2 US cents. That price excludes fuel, which the government buys.
What is BB Energy?
BB Energy calls itself a global energy company that trades and distributes energy, with offices in the UAE, UK, Singapore, Belgium, Switzerland and the United States. Kaieteur News says Lebanon’s Bassatne family controls it.
Sources: Guyana Department of Public Information, Public Utilities Ministry statement, 4 June 2026; Guyana Department of Public Information, e-procurement press conference, 18 August 2026; BB Energy company website, opened 31 October 2026; Kaieteur News, 30 October 2026; Kaieteur News, 28 October 2026; Kaieteur News, 25 October 2026; Demerara Waves, 1 July 2026; Demerara Waves, 15 September 2026; Demerara Waves, 30 October 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief