GUYANA - Vice President (VP) Bharrat Jagdeo has disclosed that the construction of the new Berbice Bridge planned for Region Six is likely to start after the scheduled 2025 General and Regional Elections.
The Vice President made the disclosure on Wednesday during his weekly press briefing at Freedom House, Robb Street, Georgetown.
Asked by media personnel if work on the new bridge would commence before the election, which is slated to be held later this year, the VP said: “I doubt it. Even if you award the contract, it takes a while to actually get mobilization and all of that.”
“The way I see it, it might be very difficult to get it done, but the commitment is that the bridge will be built, it will be a four-lane concrete bridge [and] it would be completed in the next term of office,” he added.
In January 2024, President Irfaan Ali announced that his government intended to construct a fixed high-span crossing bridge across the Berbice River.
“We are already understanding the future needs of this region. That is why we are accelerating the plans for a fixed high-span crossing bridge across the Berbice River just like the one in the Demerara River,” President Ali said at a sod-turning event held for the US$161 million modern hospital in New Amsterdam.
He had initially announced the construction of a new bridge in Berbice in October 2022.
Following the President’s announcement, the Public Works Ministry in 2024 sought expressions of interest (EOI) for the designing, building and financing of the new Berbice River Bridge.
In October 2024, nine contractors submitted bids: China Road & Bridge Corporation (China); Ashoka Buildcon Limited (India); China Railway Construction Caribbean Limited (China) in jointed venture with China Railway Construction Bridge Engineering Bureau Group Company Limited (T&T); Shandong High-speed Road & Bridge Company Limited (China) in jointed venture with AJM Enterprise; China Railway First Group Company Limited (China) in jointed venture with China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group Company Limited (China); Rockey & Son Construction (local); Kalpataru Projects International Limited (India); Vishwa Samudra Engineering Private Limited (India); and Aecon Global Services (Canada).
During its end-of-year press conference, which was held in January, Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill disclosed that seven pre-qualified international contractors were shortlisted to further bid for the project, but those firms were not identified. (Kaieteur News)
