President Irfaan Ali meets EXIM Chairman and President John Jovanovic in New York on 21 September 2026 (photo: Department of Public Information, Guyana).
Guyana and the Export-Import Bank of the United States are discussing possible support for a second gas-to-energy project and a deepwater port in Berbice. President Irfaan Ali met EXIM Chairman and President John Jovanovic in New York on 21 September, ahead of the United Nations General Assembly, according to a 22 September account from Guyana’s Department of Public Information. The meeting points to a wider infrastructure relationship, but the announcement did not identify a newly approved loan, a financing amount or a financial close for either proposal.
That distinction matters. A conversation with a potential financier can advance a project, but it is not the same as funding being authorised and available for construction. The Guyanese account says EXIM intends to continue working with the government on the first gas-to-energy project at Wales and has expressed interest in a second phase. It also places the bank among prospective partners for the Berbice port, alongside discussion of housing and other infrastructure priorities.
What the two sides discussed
The proposed second gas-to-energy project and the Berbice deepwater port are separate undertakings with different purposes. The first concerns future power-generation capacity; the second concerns a major logistics and maritime investment. DPI reports that Jovanovic described completion of the first gas-to-energy project and continued work on a second as important to reliable baseload power. On the port, he described EXIM as part of a broader group of international partners rather than the sole prospective financier.
The same meeting ranged beyond those two projects. DPI says the parties discussed an affordable-housing construction initiative involving US companies, while President Ali also referred to the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project and Lethem Airport development. The report does not provide project-specific financing terms, loan amounts or implementation timetables for these additional initiatives. Treating them as one approved package would therefore overstate what was announced.
What EXIM has already approved
There is an established financing relationship behind the new talks. In December 2024, EXIM’s board approved US$527 million for Guyana’s first gas-to-energy project. The bank said that transaction would support a natural-gas separation plant, a 300-megawatt combined-cycle power plant and services connected to the gas-supply pipeline. That authorisation is tied to the first project. It is not an approval for a second plant or the Berbice port.
EXIM is the United States’ official export-credit agency, which supports US exports through instruments that include direct loans, guarantees and insurance. Its 2024 decision was presented in that context: the bank identified US companies and services associated with the Wales development. Understanding that mandate helps explain why EXIM is involved in discussions about Guyanese infrastructure, but it does not tell us what financing instrument, if any, it might ultimately use for the newer proposals.
The relationship remained active this year. In an April 2026 release, EXIM reported that Jovanovic toured the Wales construction site and met government and private-sector representatives in Guyana. That visit provided a direct view of the first project and a forum for discussing wider commercial opportunities. It is useful context for the September meeting, not evidence of a second financing approval.
What remains to be confirmed
For the second gas-to-energy project, the public announcement leaves basic questions open: the final scope and location, expected cost, procurement arrangements, financing structure and timetable. The Berbice port likewise needs a clearly defined project design and investment structure before readers can assess the scale and terms of any EXIM participation. A lender’s expression of interest can lead to due diligence and negotiations, but a formal commitment requires further decisions.
Neither the September DPI account nor the EXIM materials cited for the earlier project identify a new board authorisation or financial close for phase two or the port. That is a statement about what these public records establish, not a claim that all discussions have stopped. Investors should look for subsequent announcements specifying a borrower, financing amount, lender group, approvals and closing conditions before treating either proposal as funded.
The commercial stakes could be substantial if the projects progress. Additional gas-based generation could affect the reliability and scale of electricity supply, while a deepwater port could change how cargo moves through the Berbice region. Those are potential outcomes, however, and their value to businesses will depend on what is ultimately built, when it operates and the terms under which it is financed.
For now, the news is a high-level discussion between Guyana and an institution that has already backed the first gas-to-energy project. The first transaction demonstrates an existing partnership; the September meeting indicates interest in extending it. Keeping those two facts separate gives businesses a clearer reading of Guyana’s infrastructure pipeline than either dismissing the talks or treating them as a completed financing deal.
