Guyana

Guyana’s Gas-to-Energy transmission network, connecting Wales across the Demerara River, is 99% complete. The project aims to halve electricity bills by replacing imported heavy fuel oil with natural gas. A new 300-megawatt power station at Wales will supply energy to the grid.

Brian Kendall was arrested at 16 for a 1988 Brooklyn murder despite eyewitnesses describing a different suspect. After 25 years, his conviction was overturned when prosecutors found him 'likely innocent,' leading to a lawsuit against the NYPD and city officials alleging evidence fabrication and witness manipulation.

The Dominican Republic holds a 10 percent stake in Guyana’s onshore Berbice oil block, with six months to begin fieldwork before operations must start by late 2026. The stake was acquired without upfront cash through state refiner Refidomsa.

The Caribbean Energy Week 2027 launches on July 20 in Georgetown, Guyana, hosted by Guyana with offshore oil production averaging nearly one million barrels daily. Suriname is advancing its GranMorgu project, and Trinidad and Tobago are also involved.

A 2026 law targets countries complicit in Cuba's exploitation of medical professionals by imposing penalties such as aid cuts and travel bans. The U.S. State Department has listed nations using Cuban doctors under coercive conditions, leading some to reduce participation. The legislation aims to cut financial support to the Cuban regime and protect doctors from exploitation.

Guyana’s Natural Resource Fund held $3.96bn in May 2026, with the 2026 approved withdrawal at $2.37bn, marking the first annual decrease from $2.46bn. The withdrawal will finance approximately 32% of unspecified expenditures.

Padmanee Sharma's family were refugees fleeing a terrible situation in Guyana when they moved to the US. She is now a top medical researcher.

Hess and CNOOC, holding 30% and 25% stakes respectively in Guyana's oil consortium, reported no head-office capital contributions for 2024 and 2025. ExxonMobil, the 45% operator, contributed GY$46.4bn ($222m) in 2025 and GY$105bn ($502m) in 2024.

Suriname's state oil firm Staatsolie received its first offshore oil bid for Sector 4 on June 17, opening a 90-day window for competitors to submit proposals by September 15. The move reflects Suriname's efforts to capitalize on regional oil exploration success, similar to Guyana's recent boom.

Guyana has nearly repaid Exxon's costs for seven oil projects, marking a turning point that could grant it half the profits. Potential delays due to ring-fencing might affect this outcome.

Guyana has moved a rare well-capping device to its coast, reducing the time required to stop a runaway offshore oil well from approximately a week to two or three days.

Guyanese soldiers were shot at by gunfire from the Venezuelan riverbank on May 29, 2026, marking the second such incident in under a month and increasing the total number of Guyanese troop injuries to ten. The clashes occur amid rising tensions over oil stakes in the region.

Paraguay experienced 6.5% economic growth in 2025 and is projected to lead South America (excluding oil-rich Guyana) through 2028, per World Bank data. Moody’s and S&P upgraded Paraguay to investment grade in 2024 and December 2025, respectively.

Suriname discovered oil and is hosting the SEOGS energy summit with a local-content forum, but lacks a local-content law unlike Guyana, leaving oil participation determined by contract clauses. The IMF highlights the GranMorgu project's potential economic impact.

ExxonMobil plans up to 35 exploration and appraisal wells in Guyana's Stabroek block between 2028 and 2033. Guyana's environmental regulator initiated a 28-day public consultation on June 14 as the first step toward an environmental impact study.

Guyana aims to use offshore gas to generate cheap power and establish a lasting industry beyond oil. The Wales Gas-to-Energy project, a $2 billion plant set for completion in 2026, is designed to significantly reduce energy costs.

Guyana's local content policy is shifting to require expat-level pay for oil workers and crack down on 'rent-a-citizen' deals, which is increasing offshore business costs. The policy aims to prioritize local employment in the oil sector.

Guyana's defense budget has increased eightfold in five years due to revenue from its booming offshore oil industry. The country is building a military from scratch, with a force of about 3,000 troops and current priorities including coastal radar and long-range drones.

US firms, led by ATALCO, are exploring a partnership with Guyana to develop an alumina refinery in Berbice, aiming to diversify the country's resource economy beyond oil. The project is positioned as a strategic move into critical minerals, advancing Guyana's role in the metals supply chain.

U92 Energy, a Toronto-listed explorer, is advancing Guyana’s only uranium project toward its first drilling by acquiring a decade-deep exploration dataset for 500,000 Canadian dollars in shares. The Kurupung site in Guyana holds a historical uranium estimate of 20.6 million pounds.

Guyana is constructing a 680km road connecting its capital, Georgetown, to Lethem on the Brazilian border, funded by its oil wealth. The project includes a Brazilian contractor and receives support from Caribbean and British entities, aiming to enhance Brazil's trade access.

Brazilian police rescued 108 Cuban migrants attempting to enter Brazil through Roraima state and arrested five alleged smugglers. The operation highlights a surge in Cuban migration to Brazil due to Cuba's economic crisis and U.S. sanctions, with Cubans now the leading nationality seeking refugee status in Brazil.

An ex-Iowa school superintendent was sentenced to two years in prison for falsely claiming U.S. citizenship on employment paperwork and illegally possessing firearms while in the United States unlawfully. He is expected to be deported to Guyana after serving his sentence following an ICE arrest in 2025, during which authorities found firearms and cash in his vehicle.

Venezuela's Delcy Rodriguez is heading to The Hague for a land dispute case involving Guyana. This will be Rodriguez's first time leaving the Caribbean since Maduro's abduction. Rodriguez will attend an ICJ case on the dispute.

Venezuela's regime is claiming the Essequibo region of Guyana, which is a 100-year territorial dispute, and also its oil reserves. The dispute is currently being heard in court. Venezuela has long claimed this territory as part of its own land.

Guyana's president Irfaan Ali warns of mineral dependence as the country's economy grows rapidly, facing challenges from inflation and conflict with Venezuela. The nation's fast growth is also threatened by a looming war with Iran that speeds a shift away from oil. Guyana is currently the world's fastest-growing economy.

Florida prosecutors have initiated a criminal investigation into the deaths of 31 sloths from South America, which were intended for display at Sloth World, a controversial new theme park in Orlando. The sloths died in an unheated warehouse between December 2024 and February 2025, according to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission report.

Alexandre Ramagem, Brazil's former spy chief, was arrested by ICE agents in the U.S. after fleeing the country following a 16-year sentence for plotting a military coup. He escaped before Jair Bolsonaro's 30-year sentence for an attempted coup, with six other cabinet members also convicted.

Corey Lewandowski, former Trump 2016 campaign manager and unpaid adviser to former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, has left the Department of Homeland Security. His departure follows speculation about his future role after Noem was named a special envoy for Western Hemisphere security issues.