Repeated water main breaks near Bank of Guyana costing millions to repair, as new pipelines remain stockpiled

Last Updated on Thursday, 17 July 2025, 23:03 by Writer

Although new, durable pipes were purchased three years ago, the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) has been spending millions of dollars to repeatedly repair constantly broken mains in the vicinity of the Bank of Guyana and National Library.

The latest leak occurred this week, one week after it was patched and the entire area resurfaced with asphaltic concrete.

GWI Chief Executive Officer Shaik Baksh could not immediately say how much money the utility company was spending on repairing a leak, but assured that the pipes stretching from around the National Library to Muneshwer’s Limited would be replaced before year end. The pipes have been stockpiled on Sheriff Street since 2022. “We have a programme now to open up the whole area there and put in new lines and de-commission the old lines,” he told Demerara Waves Online News.

Sources said the political directorate was delaying the replacements of the more than 200 meters of pipe in that area, fearing a social media backlash for the disruption of traffic. Asked whether repeatedly patching the mains was working out more expensive than fixing the problem permanently by replacing the mains, he said GWI was concerned about the impact such works would have on road traffic. “Because of the heavy traffic flow, we don’t want to disrupt traffic along that whole area so have to do phase by phase,” he said. He said it would be impossible to excavate and replace the pipes rather than merely repair them because of the “technical complexity of the job” because there is a “maze of pipelines” and “so many chambers” that are underground.

Asked why the Bank of Guyana area was not treated as priority, Mr Baksh said other priority areas were repaired. He said the multi-year project to replace the transmission mains continues, with work having been completed from Broad Street to Avenue of the Republic as well as from Lamaha Street to Pegasus, and from Shelter Belt, Vlissengen Road to East Street.

However, sources said that excavation works, pipe repairs and repairs to the road cost GWI more than GY$1 million per leak. The source said if the Public Works Ministry is unavailable to repair the road, GWI has to hire a private contractor to make the road passable.

The sources also said that GWI loses revenue each time there is a breakage and repairs have to be carried out. That, according to the source, is because the water pressure has to be turned off or reduced, resulting in the inability of residents’ water tanks to be refilled overnight.

The mains in that area near the Bank of Guyana, National Library and on the southern side of Guyana Stores have broken more than 12 times for the year.

Mr Baksh attributed the constant breakages to the fact that the cast iron pipes in that area are more than 100 years old, and they come under intense pressure from heavy laden vehicles. In recent years, numerous shipping container trucks and trailers – many laden with pipes, equipment and other supplies for the oil sector – have been frequenting that area and other streets in Georgetown.