$1.3B for Amaila Falls Access road to meet roll over payments – Benn

Apr 13, 2014 News

---

The majority of the $1.3B (US$6.5M) voted for in the 2014 National Budget for the construction of the Amaila Falls Access will be used to make payments that have rolled over.

This was confirmed by the Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn yesterday, when contacted for an explanation. He has said that the project is set to be completed by the end of this month.
The Minister said that a number of payments had to be rolled over and as such payments will be met from the allocation.
The US$6.5M was almost axed from the budget as A Partnership for National Unity (AFC) voted against it but the Alliance for Change abstained from voting.
This meant that there were 32 votes in support of the project from the government benches, 26 opposing the allocations and the AFC abstained from voting.
Prior to the vote APNU’s Joseph Harmon had questioned, why government would want to request $1.3B for the road when there is a signed project. “Why ask for money for a road that goes to no project?”
AFC Vice Chairman, Moses Nagamootoo, also voiced similar concerns over the road project.
Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn, in response, told the House that there is a national project for the construction of the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric project in the amount of 165MW of cheap, sustainable and renewable power.
Benn recalled that Harmon as well as his colleague Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine had been flown out to the project and they at the time had expressed delight.
The Minister recalled that there was an issue arising out of Parliament when there was a failed vote causing Sithe Global to walk from the project,
According to the Minister, “We cannot delay the finish of the construction of the road and hope to get it in time for the things we need to do…Guyana intends to build the hydro plant.”
Benn during his budget debates had said, “The question of cheap power for our country, the most important thing which affects the economy of our country, is the most important question, the lack of cheap renewable power in our nation’s development equation and the building of the road and the hydro plant will resolve this problem.”
Initially set at US15.4M, some US$30M has already been spent on the project and it is expected that the cost could escalate further since Government is yet to finalise and allocate contracts for two key crossings, the Kuribrong and Butakari crossings.
It is expected that the crossing at the Butakari would be a pontoon crossing and while the design for a bridge across the Kuribrong has been completed, Government is yet to make a decision to execute a contract.
According to reports, the US$15.4M contract issued to Makeshwar ‘Fip’ Motilall which was initially inked in 2010 based on specifications provided by Sithe Global was increased by US$1.9M.

This is according to a recent response provided by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh to his shadow counterpart in the National Assembly, APNU’s Carl Greenidge.
Greenidge in a formal question to the Minister in the House had queried the cost of the amendment of the specifications of the Amaila Road contract, undertaken after the termination of the contract with Synergy.
The Finance Minister in his response, said that during the course of construction in 2012, the scope was revised after taking account of third party inspections of the terrain, environmental consideration, maintenance requirements and the detailed negotiation ongoing with China Railway First Group.
This publication understands that the width of the road had to be increased from five meters to seven meters and the embankment had to be raised accordingly.
“The cost of the amendment of the specifications of the Amaila Falls Access Road Contract amounted to US$1.9M, taking the contract sum of Synergy Holdings Inc. to US$17.3M.”
Motilall was paid US$5.8M before his contract was terminated.
According to the Finance Minister the current cost of construction of the Amaila Falls Access Road, taking into account the separation of the project into lots and separate tendering, now amounts to US$23.8 million, an increase of US$6.5 million from the revised contract sum with Synergy Holdings Inc.
The current costs include both changes in specifications and other changes in costs since 2010.
This would mean that US$29.6M would have been spent thus far on the project and this figure will increase further when the costs of the two river crossings are determined and contracts executed.
According to the Finance Minister, on March 18, 2010, a Contract Agreement for the construction of the Amaila Falls Access Road and Transmission Line Clearing was entered into between Synergy Holdings Inc. and the Government of Guyana, represented by the Ministry of Public Works and the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL).
The specifications for the building of the road were provided by Sithe Global and reviewed by the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) and the Ministry of Public Works.
The Finance Minister explained that given that the contract was jointly executed by both NICIL and the Ministry of Public Works, the tender documents were jointly reviewed by the two contract parties in consultation with Sithe Global.
The Finance Minister said that the tenders received were reviewed by a three-person evaluation team comprising Walter Willis, Leon Goring, and Gordon Gilkes. The evaluation report was ultimately submitted to Cabinet for its no-objection.

---

---