MANUFACTURERS, frustrated by plans to impose huge water and electricity rate increases, are planning to move their plant and equipment to investment-friendly Guyana.
Several concerned manufacturers and other entrepreneurs are quietly proposing to take their operations to the booming South American neighbour.
The business community is unified on the position that they did not budget for such steep increases in charges by Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (TTEC) and Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA).
Business investors are already reeling from weak trade, caused by high unemployment and inflation, and low consumer confidence.
Operations are also affected by the staggering crime rate, which has led to costly security charges, high fuel costs, and broken-down roads, which have spiked delivery costs.
In addition, many are reporting difficulties in servicing loans and overdrafts from commercial banks, which have not reduced interest rates even as they report unprecedented profits.
The snail’s pace of Valued Added Tax (VAT) returns has also impacted cash flow in the business sector.
TTEC has asked the Regulated Industries Commission (RIC) to impose a 128.5 per cent rate increase over five years on commercial and industrial customers.
A 65.75 per cent hike is being sought for household electricity consumers.
WASA, which is carrying a debt of some $1 billion, is also seeking to jack up its rates.
Several manufacturers confirmed plans to move to Guyana, which has been described by the World Bank as “the destination for international investment.”
The fellow Caricom country attracted investments to the value of US $1.8 billion in 2020 and US $4.3 billion in 2021.
Indications are that many more investors are heading to Georgetown as a result of the enabling business environment created by the administration of President Dr. Irfaan Ali.
The huge reserve of natural gas is luring many industrial operations.
Several of Trinidad and Tobago’s industrial companies have already applied to Guyana’s Environmental Protection Agency for the required permission to operate in that land.
In contrast, Trinidad and Tobago is losing investors at the rate of US $750 million a year and has not attracted a single international industrialist in several years.
Local manufacturers echoed the views of successful entrepreneur Derek Chin, who described Guyana as a “behemoth,” with intelligent and hard-working people.
Chin said that business opportunities in Guyana are “plentiful.”
He has agonised about the T&T crime rate, saying it is having an adverse effect on business.
Chin, who owns the MovieTowne cineplexes in T&T, has invested US $50 million in a similar complex in Guyana.
A senior executive of a prominent T&T business firm said the administration of Dr. Keith Rowley “is not creating business confidence.
“The private sector wants to invest and to create wealth, but most of us are operating on slim margins and the forecast is not positive.”
He said: “There are no measures of innovation, to modernise the economy, and not enough is being done for manufacturers.”
The executive criticised the slow pace of digitisation of the public sector and the lack of incentives to spur agricultural production.
He forecasts ongoing business closures, especially among small and medium-sized enterprises.
The Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC) has reported that more than half of direct foreign investments to the Caribbean in recent years have gone to Guyana.
The Government of Dr. Ali has been credited with creating an investment-friendly climate and has held conferences outlining initiatives and promoting investor confidence.
Among the measures are financial and technical assistance.
Guyana has also been hailed for transitioning to a green economy.
Investors from various countries around the world are keenly interested in the upcoming auctioning of 14 crude oil and natural gas blocks.
Leading Guyanese officials, including President Ali and Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, have been busily marketing their country as a viable business destination.
“Guyana is open for business,” Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh said.
