US faces uphill task to curb China in Guyana

Dear Editor,

Per your September 22, 2026 headline story, “US EXIM commits to financing GtE 2,”^[1] Guyanese would do well to read into US Exim Bank’s commitment to financing Phase 2 of Guyana’s Gas-to-Energy ventures as a potent signal to the PPP government that the Trump administration is on a tidal wave push to rid the Western Hemisphere of Chinese or, at least, reduce such investments to a tolerable ‘nuisance’ level.

After the PPP returned to power in 1992, one of the major sticking points for President Cheddi Jagan was how to resolve the US$2.1 billion public external debt. It is believed that over 95% of Guyana’s national revenue was required just to service that debt, so the Jagan regime reportedly ended up allocating around 50% of its foreign exchange to debt obligations, and 40% to fuel imports, which left about 10% to operate government.

Whether it was a fortuitous step or a leap of faith, when Bharrat Jagdeo took over the presidency in August 1999, he chose to continue the Economic Recovery Path set by mostly Western lenders for Desmond Hoyte to follow. Some Guyanese believe that, with his functional superior Asgar Ally gone since May 1995 over ‘political and policy differences’, and Janet Jagan retired, Jagdeo felt uninhibited as his adherence to the Western lenders’ rules of engagement saw the external debt significantly reduced through debt relief initiatives to around 45% (down from over 900% in 1992) by the time he demitted office in 2011.

But during his 1999-2011 presidency, Guyana also appeared to have shifted to China for development financing and using Chinese state-owned or backed contractors for its major national infrastructure development projects, rather than relying on traditional Western lenders and contractors. The rationale for the switch here was said to be that Chinese loans were more readily available or had more accessible terms sans the complex administrative red tape delays and upfront fees associated with some Western bilateral loans.

Space would not allow for a complete or comprehensive list of projects executed to-date by China, including financing and contractual works, but here is chronological snapshot:

• June 2004: China’s CNTIC, with zero experience in sugar factory construction, being awarded the US$200m Skeldon Modernization Plant Project.^[2] The China-financed plant never worked.
• November 2011: China Harbour Engineering Company was awarded the CJIA upgrade contract with China Exim Bank putting up a US$138m loan.^[3] This contract, signed in secret in Jamaica by then Public Works Minister Benn, caused some controversy at home because Guyanese first learned of the contract from a Jamaica Observer, November 18, 2011 news report. The PPP government further muddied the waters when it subsequently revealed the deal had received Cabinet approval, which was a contradiction of local procurement rules that require a big-ticket US$138m award must go through the public bidding process.
• May 2022: Bank of China agreed to lend Guyana US$172m to build the new Demerara River Bridge^[4], which was built by three Chinese contractors. Clarification: In October 2021, Cabinet initially gave its no-objection approval to China State Construction Engineering Corporation and China Railway Construction Corporation in a joint venture undertaking.
• October 2022: China Exim Bank agreed to help finance the US$184m East Coast Demerara Road Expansion Project, with China Railway First Group as the contractor.

There were also numerous other medium-to-large scale projects awarded to Chinese contractors, including ones by GPL to China Power Corporation for infrastructure and battery storage systems. The government-owned Marriott Hotel, which was financed by NICIL for US$50m, was built by a Chinese company, Shanghai Construction Group, with a predominantly Chinese workforce.

Again, that’s just a snapshot of China’s investments in big-ticket projects in Guyana and, while Guyanese should welcome US Exim Bank committing to finance Phase 2 to GtE, China’s past and current investments serve to underscore the uphill task the Trump administration faces if it truly intends to compete with or reduce China’s footprint in Guyana.

Since 2000, one report has it that China invested over US$190 billion in Latin America and the Caribbean, with Chinese companies and state entities investing around US$13 billion in Guyana to-date. The United States, by comparison, did not make large-scale direct investments in commercial projects in Guyana during the period 2000 to 2020, opting instead for official foreign assistance and development aid amounting to somewhere between US$150m and US$180m. With Exxon, Hess (replaced by Chevron) and recent U.S investors arriving in Guyana since 2020, that picture will likely change, but China has already established a foothold in Guyana via thousands of Chinese nationals taking up residence and doing business in Guyana, and ongoing direct government-to-government deals. The Chinese are having a fun-filled field day in Guyana.

When Guyana first signed, in July 2022, a US$2 billion Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Washington, D.C. to finance key developmental projects with U.S Exim Bank^[5], it agreed in January 2025 to release US$527 million towards the current GtE project, but the July 2022 MOU also contained a financing framework to both state and private sector projects.

I am not aware of how many, if any, Guyanese private investors have taken advantage of US Exim Bank’s financing framework, but I am definitely aware of Chinese state-owned banks focusing their lending directly to the Guyana government or financing Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) operating within Guyana under the 2013 Belt and Road Initiative.

If the Trump administration intends to expand its economic footprint and not just its political fingerprint on Guyana, it will have to step up its game plan, put on its game face and bring its ‘A’ game to contend with China. With thousands of Guyanese calling America home, Guyanese are eager to change the narrative from the PPP government being the lone engine of economic growth by incentivizing Guyanese as investors at home in a greater way. Guyanese are not flocking to China.

References

1. US EXIM commits to financing GtE 2 — kiskadeewatch.com ↩
2. Skeldon sugar modernization: Far too long in the making - Stabroek News — www.stabroeknews.com ↩
3. Chinese company to build modern CJIA terminal, extend runway - Stabroek News — www.stabroeknews.com ↩
4. Bank of China lending US$172m for new bridge over Demerara — www.stabroeknews.com ↩
5. US$2b MoU sealed between Guyana, US EXIM bank - Stabroek News — www.stabroeknews.com ↩