Gouveia says Guyanese companies should partner with US firms as Venezuela opens

PSC Chairman, Captain Gerry Gouveia Jr

Chairman of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), Captain Gerry Gouveia Jr, says local companies must align with United States corporations to benefit from market opportunities in Venezuela.
Speaking during an exclusive interview on the latest edition of Ignite News Insights, Gouveia discussed what the current political climate in Venezuela means for Guyana’s trade, border and supply chain.

Last Saturday, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were seized by US forces in Caracas and flown to the United States, where they have been charged in federal court with narcotics and related offences, including narco‑terrorism and cocaine importation conspiracy. Both have pleaded not guilty in a federal court.
Gouveia said with Venezuela possibly opening up as a new market, more shipping companies will be competing, and local companies should look at mitigating factors.

“The other opportunities that we could see here is that we align ourselves with the US companies, whom we’re already working with in Guyana, who are now going to be investing in Venezuela. We kind of start aligning with them and then using their own security and compliance frameworks to help mitigate a lot of these risks,” Gouveia shared.
Addressing concerns about spill‑over instability, the PSC chairman said he does not anticipate major security threats affecting Guyana at this time.

However, he cautioned that Guyanese businesses must take a more careful approach if they intend to engage with or support operations in Venezuela.
“Where I do see Guyanese mitigating is if we want to do business in Venezuela or support companies doing business in Venezuela. Our compliance and security aspects we do have to take a heightened approach to that,” he stressed.

Gouveia said navigating these opportunities will require careful planning, strong partnerships and adherence to international standards.
According to the PSC chairman, how Guyanese companies position themselves now will determine whether they can benefit from Venezuela‑related opportunities while protecting Guyana’s stability.