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$754M Black Bush pump station to be completed by July next year- Agri. Minister
Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha during an engagement with residents at No. 48 Village on Saturday. (Ministry of Agriculture)
Kaieteur News-Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha on Saturday revealed that the $754 million Black Bush Polder pump station project which was initially set to be completed by August last year, is now expected to be finished by July next year.
The minister made the announcement during an engagement with residents and farmers of No. 48 Village Corentyne, Region Six.
Addressing the farmers from Black Bush Polder who were in attendance, Mustapha said that when he assumed the position of Agriculture Minister back in 2020, he had his team look at the problematic areas across the country that needed resolution.
According to the minister, a plan was initiated to put systems in place to resolve those issues. He informed that at the Black Bush Polder front-lands they recognized that the pumps supplying water there, could not satisfy the demands needed.
The Black Bush Polder area, he said, has approximately 23,000 acres of land available for rice cultivation and already they have provided water for some 14,000 of that amount, leaving 9,000 acres yet to be irrigated.
Noting that there are some six pump systems in place currently in the area, they have been looking at a long-term plan to have water steadily available to the farmers.
This he said, is why they decided to go out to tender to construct a pump station facility at the front-lands area.
“In 2021 we awarded a contract to build a new irrigation pump station for the front-lands, it was awarded to a contractor in Region 6 and the project was supposed to be completed by the end of August last year, the contractor didn’t do the work and we had to terminate the contract,” he explained.
Noting the challenges of the farmers in area, he said they went out again and retendered for the project. “Because we recognised, we knew what was the cause and what are the issues in the front-lands and every time we have rice cultivation, farmers they are getting issues, we recognized that, that is why now we have retendered that job and it has been awarded to another contractor who is now completing that project,” the minister informed the residents.
Stating that the pump station is expected to provide some 252,000 gallons of water per minute, Mustapha added, “it will be completed by July next year.”
Kaieteur News had reported that on May 30, 2024, the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) office awarded the $754,978,560 contract to Quality Deliverer.
The contract to construct the pump station, and to irrigate the Black Bush Polder front-lands were retendered due to the termination of the initial contract last year.
The Ministry of Agriculture had inked a $978.7 million contract with Yunaz Civil and Building Construction in October 2021 to build a pump station at the Black Bush Polder Front Lands.
However, the project had passed its deadline and the slothfulness of the works was raised by Opposition Member of Parliament (MP), Ganesh Mahipaul in October 2023.
Following the concerns raised by the Opposition MP, the Ministry of Agriculture in a letter addressing the issue had announced that the project was terminated by the NDIA in September 2023, for poor quality and performance of works being executed.
($754M Black Bush pump station to be completed by July next year- Agri. Minister)
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