Incorrect views.

Correct, the proposed hydroelectric project would be generating power all year round.

That is true unless they have to continue using caterpillar engines. So mucf for saving on oil import.  

Another incorrect statement.

Well you must be right. After all you're a former engineer for Mr Burnham. 

Amaila Falls runs dry

October 12, 2013, By KNews, Filed Under News, Source

The Amaila Falls which was intended to supply the nation with 165 megawatts of electricity and save Guyana millions of US dollars is bone dry.

An overhead view of the dried out Amaila Falls

Yesterday, Works Minister Robeson Benn said that it is not unusual for waterfalls used to provide hydroelectricity to run dry. He pointed to power stations in Suriname and in Brazil.

He said that when the contractors would have built a dam that would have stored water to smoothen the flow regime. The dam would have given rise to a reservoir which would have been used to regulate the flow of water for the hydro.

Minister Benn also explained that in times of heavy rainfall, the excess water would have been released through gates. He insisted that had there been a dam, the extent of dryness at this time would not have been as severe.

The hydroelectric facility was being constructed at a whopping US860 million. This dry spell revealed that Guyana could not have depended on the hydro for a continuous supply of power.

A photograph provided by GINA of Amaila Falls with a bountiful supply of water in March Last year

Minister Benn said that the engines currently in use by Guyana Power and Light would have been kept to provide a back up. The smaller engines would have been distributed to places like Mahdia and Port Kaituma and some Berbice locations where electricity is generated for no more than four hours a day.

But if indeed that were to be the case then whenever the falls runs dry the nation would have experienced severe power outages.

Amaila would certainly not have been worth the money spent to build it.

Correct .. and note also, there are other world-wide dam locations with similar features to those in Brazil and Suriname

Then you are a CERTIFIED DUMMY as I suspected.

Amaila Falls flows for 28 seconds:

Amaila Falls dry spell… : Minister says: ‘No need to worry’ : --all it needs is a reservoir

Written by Leroy Smith, Saturday, 12 October 2013 23:26, Source

WORKS Minister Robeson Benn said yesterday that the drying up of the Amaila Falls is nothing to worry about, since the remedy to the problem is also part of the design for the project.

Minister Benn told the Guyana Chronicle yesterday that as part of the design for the Amaila Falls, like any other hydro project, there will be constructed a dam, better known as a reservoir, which will serve the purpose of holding water to ensure that the ‘hydro’ has a continuous flow of water.

The minister explained that the reservoir would be used to regulate the water flow, which would see water being stored and released as needed, especially when the falls experiences instances like presently obtains (running dry).

He said that when the water that powers the hydro seems to be getting below the required level, water from the reservoir would be released to keep the level needed; and likewise, when there is too much water in the reservoir itself, it would be released to maintain the required level, as advised by the engineers.

While not a regular occurrence, the issue of the falls running dry is normal, and is also experienced by other falls around the world, Benn added.

He said that at the moment there is a low water regime, which makes impossible the presence of adequate water to maintain a flow at both the falls and river. Moreover, the low water regime also impacts on proper navigating along the rivers during such occurrences.

From time to time, the Kaieteur Falls also experiences low water levels, the minister said, as he made it clear that despite the instances of low water, 99.9 percent of the time there would be sufficient water coming through the falls to power hydro power terminals. He said there is also possibility of the dams running a bit low on water during the present period, because the dry weather is being experienced, and this is also evident along the coast.

He deemed the dry weather also a blessing in disguise, since it allows for infrastructural works.

There is a fundamental difference between a run-of-the-river hydroelectric project and one built with a storage reservoir.

1. Run-of-the-river hydroelectric project would indeed be subject to low flows conditions, similar to the current situation.

2. Storage reservoir projects are designed to address these conditions, based on the design parameters, e.g, 1:100 year flows; 1:500 year flows; 1:1,000 year flows and possibly, 1:10,000 year flows.