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$120M barge crossing completed for Section Two of Amaila Road
By Rabindra Rooplall
The barge crossing for Section Two of the Amaila Road has been completed to facilitate crossing the Essequibo River, according to Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn, during a recent on site visit.
The $120M roll on/roll off barge with propulsion units and controls that are to be connected at the end of the access road of Section Two of the Amaila Falls road.
The $120M roll on/roll off barge with propulsion units and controls, will be connected at the end of Section Two of the access road of the Amaila Falls road.
The unit will be attached by construction company InFab which was responsible for the building and design of the barge. Crossing at the barge will lead to the Butakari Landing, Section Three of the Amaila Falls Access Road. Plans are also afoot to have the barge operational before the May/June rains.
“By the time the water comes, we will want the thing to be in operation so we will have to decide whether we will put it on now or wait later. We have to find a simple solution or we wait,” Minister Benn said.
“The barge crossing is built to withstand weight of up to 120 tonnes.”
Minister Benn is contemplating the opportune time for dredging the river in the vicinity of the crossing. The cost attached to this is $11M.
Chief Public Works Engineer, Walter Willis, said the roll on/roll off feature was not originally planned for the barge, but after careful examination and consideration the design was adopted since it would make maneuvering the barge easier.
“This barge is going to be a prototype for the Kuribrong crossing. Its design adapted will save us quite a lot of money.”
The Amaila Project involves the construction of a hydropower plant in the area of west-central Guyana, where the Amaila and Kuribrong rivers meet.
Electricity produced at the plant will be delivered to Georgetown and Linden through a high-voltage 230-KV transmission line that will be built along with electric substations in Linden and Georgetown.
A new road approximately 65- km long will be built connecting the project site to the existing Bartica-Potaro Road.
Another new road, approximately 20 km long, will be constructed from the existing Mabura Hills Highway to the Essequibo River.
The Amaila Falls Access Road stretches some 162 kilometres, most of which is located in virgin territory.
The project, which was divided into seven sections, went on with section one being dropped. This part includes works to a stretch of road from Linden to turn off, heading to the Essequibo River. He said that this section was taken off as it fell under the routine maintenance work of the Ministry under hinterland roads.
Section two catered for 19.6 kilometres (km) of road from Mabura to the Essequibo River; section 3 catered for a stretch measuring 37.5 km; section four, 20.3 km and section 5, which includes a bypass of Kaburi Village, 13 km.
Willis had previously noted that the by-pass had to be built after stakeholder and donor agencies for the project were against construction traffic going through the village for safety reasons.
Section 6 and Section 7 catered for 18.5 km and 50 km respectively.
This project also saw the construction of several timber bridges in the various sections, as well as steel bridges in some instances.
However, there are some delays in the projects with Ivor Allen and Toolsie Persaud Quarries, still to complete works in section 6 and Section 4.
Other contractors who have worked on this project include Mekdeci Machinery and Construction, and China Railway First Group.
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