Oil Fund earns US$141M in interest for 2024.
The Natural Resource Fund (NRF) in 2024 accumulated an interest of US$141M in 2024, a substantial increase of almost 63% compared with the US$55M earned in 2023.
This is according to the 2024 NRF Annual Report, laid in the National Assembly earlier this month. The document provides highlights on the activities of the Fund, in accordance with the NRF Act of 2021.
It states, “Net return generated by the Fund totaled G$29,469.77 million (US$141.34 million) for the year 2024, a substantial increase of 62.77% (G$11,364.52 / US$54.51 million) from 2023 on account of a higher account balance and sustained high interest rates on overnight deposits during the year. Hence, an annual portfolio return of 5.095% was achieved by the Fund in 2024 compared with 4.824% in 2023.”
Notably, the report explains that the Board of Directors of the NRF met on May 16, 2024, where it approved the Investment Mandate of the Fund. “It was mandated that the funds be maintained in overnight deposits at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. It was agreed that the Bank will continue to monitor the overnight interest rate and related market developments and inform the Chairman of any key changes to consider the feasibility of rebalancing the Portfolio items,” the document outlines.
Towards the end of the year, a proposal was under consideration by the Board of Directors to revise the current investment mandate. However, at the financial year end, there was no change to the Investment Mandate as the federal funds rate remained relatively high.
The document revealed that between the period January 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024, Guyana produced a total of 225.4 million barrels of oil, compared with 142.8 million barrels in 2023.
To this end, it was noted, “As at December 31, 2024, the market value of the Fund stood at G$676,725.57 million (US$3,245.69 million), reflecting a growth of 52.93% (G$234,209.44 million / US$1,123.31 million) from the level recorded in 2023.”
The report explains that the NRF accounted for inflows of US$2,567.96 million for the year 2024, representing an increase of 59.68% when compared with inflows of US$1,608.22 million for 2023.
Regarding outflows, government withdrew a total of US$1,586.0 million in 2024, which reflected an increase of 58.26% (US$583.87 million) from the US$1,002.13 million drawn down by the GoG in 2023.
The report notes that Brent crude oil prices fell slightly by 3.12% during 2024, moving from US$77.04/bbl. at the start of the year to US$74.64/bbl. as at end of December 2024.