With just three months remaining for them to deliver the Schoonord to Crane four-lane highway, President Irfaan Ali on Thursday slammed contractors after almost all of them were behind in the execution of the project.
As he inspected the state of affairs at the site, Ali engaged each contractor on their performance and positioned that failure to deliver on time will result in liquidate damages being applied. The $11.8B four-lane highway project from Schoonord to Crane is being undertaken by eight companies.
VR construction has completed 45 per cent of the respective lot. According to engineers, they are behind schedule.
Meanwhile, Avinash Contracting and Scrap Metal Inc has achieved only 35 per cent completion. The contractor indicated that they were awaiting piles to continue.
AJM Enterprise and Vals Construction are two others which have only completed 40 per cent of their lots – meaning they are also behind schedule.
GuyAmerica Construction Incorporated was grilled for operating two sites with only one engineer.
“I’m looking at all the performance now…If you don’t finish this thing, liquidated damages will be applied. Let me tell you. There is absolutely no excuse. We have the best weather for construction now. What I am seeing here is only GuyAmerica and one other contractor on track. Everybody else is off track here,” the President directed.
The Head of State hinted at further checks in September, where he asked that substantial progress be made by then. All contractors are required to finish their respective projects by October 25, 2023.
Once completed, the modern road with include features to allow for easy and free flow of traffic at both ends. These include two roundabouts, 11 reinforced concrete box culverts, 36 pre-stressed bridges, and road signage and markings. It is part of a larger vision to connect all the way to Parika.
Eccles-to-Diamond project
Meanwhile, President Ali also sounded a last warning to contractors executing works on the Eccles to Diamond four-lane highway, where he positioned that his Government will not be bending its timelines any further or tolerate excuses for delays on the project.
The Head of State also inspected ongoing works and the progress of all 17 lots.
Apart from three lots leading to the Diamond connection, Government was aiming to have the project wrapped up by mid-August. With excellent weather conditions this time around, the President called out contractors for not utilising these advantages.
And with several aspects of the project yet to be completed, he lamented that provisions should have been made for a shift system among other mechanisms. As such, the companies conducting these major works were informed that the works should be completed in keeping with the respective deadlines.
“Our intention was to have by the end of August, this highway completed. We’re not tolerating any excuse for non-completion of works. Both the engineers and the contractors will be held accountable. I am making this very, very clear…We have to make use of weather opportunity days. Works that are behind, I expected to see lights out here. I expected to see systems in place for at least a three-shift system for this to be done,” he outlined.
In one instance, one of the companies failed to meet their completion date of June 6, 2023, and the work was only 60 per cent completed. The contractor has asked for an additional two weeks to get the work done.
With this new assessment, the work is expected to be wrapped up by August 10, 2023.
“What you see here is that major works, that is the sand filling and the paving is completed. It is the work that requires some detail and once they put the shift system in place, this can be completed. They have the weather. Most of the structural work is completed.”
The $13.3 billion Eccles to Great Diamond, East Bank Demerara highway project is one of several massive road projects currently undertaken by the Ali-led Administration.
A total of 12 companies were contracted to construct a four-lane road to run from the Eccles Dumpsite Road all the way to Great Diamond, connecting to the already completed Eccles to Mandela Avenue Highway.
Demerara crossing
Inspecting works on the new Demerara River Crossing, and the Schoonord to Crane four-lane Highway, the President was updated that mobilisation is about 50 per cent completed.
By next month, all supplies will arrive and the company, China Railway First Group, is on track to hand over the completed structure by ending of 2024.
A US$260 million contract was signed in May 2022 with a joint venture led by China Railway and Construction Corporation Limited to construct the new bridge, which will land aback Nandy Park on the East Bank of Demerara and at La Grange, West Bank Demerara.
