Linden and power
It is ironic that Linden’s water and power crisis has come at the same time that the capital city is grappling with its own bleak electricity woes which have resulted in blackouts due to the inability of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) to purchase adequate fuel.

In essence, two of the government’s privatisation deals have unravelled causing immense dislocation. In Linden it was the deal with Texas Ohio Energy (TOE) of the US to form the Linden Power Company (LPC) while in Georgetown it was the agreement with the Commonwealth Development Corporation/ESBI for the GPL. It must set the government and the Privatisation Unit thinking about the reasons behind the failures and what should have been done differently.

From the very outset, the TOE deal never seemed likely to stay above the water and various commitments given by LPC for repair of equipment and consistency of supply were not met.

The Linden Mining Enterprise (Linmine) and residents were repeatedly let down by the company’s performance and the company finally went into receivership last year. It must be pointed out that on privatisation Lindeners were mainly in charge of the operations of LPC.

It must have dawned upon the government that LPC in receivership was unstable, on the brink of further deterioration and that it would be the state that would have to help it in a crisis. So it comes as a surprise that following the collapse of LPC’s boiler feed pump on March 30 that the government wasn’t a bit more agile in deducing the extent of the problem. It wasn’t until April 5 - six days later - that a decision was taken to dispatch two 1.25 MW sets to the mining town. They arrived at 11 pm that night in Linden and over the coming days were in and out of service for various reasons. There were clearly no contingency plans for dealing with a breakdown in Linden’s power supply.

And so the anger of Lindeners grew. Understandably. They had no water and electricity and as far as they were concerned the government was not showing sufficient interest in their plight. They started blocking bridges into Linden, halting ferry traffic across the Demerara River and barricading the key access road to the interior. Inevitably there were acts of hooliganism, robbery and other violence. Chaos prevailed.

After a sluggish response, the government has done as much as it can under the circumstances. It is already subsidising the supply of electricity to the Linden to the tune of $80M per month. There will come a time when all of these subsidies must end but given the depressed state of Linden it is not a possibility at this time. In addition to the two GPL sets which have been supplied, a third one has been dispatched to the mining town. Two more sets have been ordered on lease from MACORP and are due later this month from the US. Assistance is also being provided for the acquisition of key parts for LPC’s facilities to get its generators going.

The state has also initiated discussions with Omai Gold Mines Limited (OGML) for the creation of a power station which will supply 9 MW of power to the town. This plan is meant to synchronise with the proposed equity investment by OGML’s parent company Cambior in Linmine’s operations. The 9 MW proposal is a very promising one and if it materialises would enable an adequate power supply in conjunction with the present generating facilities at LPC.

There is no magic bullet for Linden, Georgetown or anywhere else. Lindeners must understand this and not jeopardise the possibility of securing a better future for Linmine and the town itself. The protests by Lindeners and the blocking of roads and bridges forced OGML to send home its workers and will likely set back the timetable that had been fixed for the establishment of the 9 MW power plant. On Saturday, the situation had improved and OGML was able to use its access road. Yesterday, the protesters again blocked the company’s usage of the road and workers had to be demobilised again. It is not only OGML that is feeling the pain. UNAMCO and other forest companies are being seriously squeezed along with a range of other companies. Moreover, other companies toying with the prospect of putting money into Linden would cringe at the ease and intensity with which the operations of the town were paralysed by protesters. They will think twice and thrice before setting up there.

Lindeners have already made their point. Georgetown and the rest of the country have heard it loud and clear. It is now time for the short-term measures outlined by the government to be given an opportunity to work. These may take several weeks to be fully implemented and residents of the town must ease off their blockades and other protest measures and their leaders should convince them to do so. There is also the promising medium to long-term deal in the OGML offer to set up a power station and Cambior’s interest in Linmine. Lindeners have to be careful not to damage prospects for either.

No part of the country has been immune from the travails - economic, political, criminal and psychological - that have buffeted the country for the last five years or so. But there comes a time when overdone protests harm the very goals being agitated for and end up being used for other schemes which have nothing to do with the well-being of the people. Lindeners should be wary of this.