Guyana’s economy is booming along with oil production, but even some lofty GDP growth estimates aren’t high enough, according to President Irfaan Ali.
“The projection of over 25% to 30% in the medium term, is I think, a very conservative number, because the value added component is going to drive that up even more,” he told Bloomberg TV on Monday.
In September, the IMF forecasted that in the medium-term, the Guyanese economy would see real GDP grow on average by 20% per year between 2024 and 2028. That’s after growth of more than 60% in 2022.
Meanwhile, oil production shot up to nearly 400,000 barrels per day early this year from less than 100,000 three years prior. And by 2027, some forecasts put output at 1.2 million barrels per day.
The sudden growth comes as Guyana has emerged as major source of additional supply in global oil markets.
On Monday, energy expert Dan Yergin said that Guyana has the fastest growing offshore oil development in the history of the world.
Despite the breakneck pace of growth, Ali said Guyana is also seeking to diversify its economy.
“Our economy is growing at an accelerated pace, but the growth of the economy that is primarily driven by oil is not going to be the structure of the economy,” he said. “We are working on broadening the structure of the economy and ensuring our energy portfolio is diversified.”
Recently, turbulence has intensified in Guyana as a century-old border dispute with Venezuela has seized the political limelight. Last week, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, told oil companies like Exxon Mobil to leave their Guyanese oil projects and withdraw from the region as tensions escalate.
Ali, however, tried to quell fears of the conflict’s domino effect on the oil industry. Exxon and other members of the oil consortium are “moving ahead aggressively with their production plan,” Ali said.
“There is absolutely no slowing down,” he added.
