Another $445M contract to be spent on renovated CJIA

Mar 19, 2024 News

Section of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA). (Photo courtesy CJIA)

Kaieteur News – Having been allocated $1.1 billion this year to continue upgrades on the recently renovated Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), the Ministry of Public Works is now preparing to spend $445 million on another project at the airport.

This is according to a tender issued by the ministry seeking contractors to bid for the project – ‘Rehabilitation of Taxiway Charlie – Phase 1.’ The taxiway is a pathway for aircraft at an airport which connects runways with aprons, hangars and terminals among other facilities.

Bidding for the project will be conducted through the National Competitive Bidding procedure specified in the Procurement Act 2003, and will be opened on April 9, 2024 at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) office.

Kaieteur News had reported that the new works for the airport are part of the government’s plans to modernise the facility. With about US$150 million already pumped into the expansion of CJIA– citizens should expect more of their taxpayers’ dollars going towards the ‘continued modernisation’ of the airport.

At a press conference in 2022, Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill told reporters that construction on the airport will continue. The airport expansion contract was signed in 2011 under then President, Bharrat Jagdeo and has passed through the truncated presidency of Donald Ramotar.

However, when the David Granger administration took office in 2015, it said that the very defective plan needed adjustments and changes were made. The decade-old project was awarded to Chinese contractor, China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) for the sum of US$150 million: $138 million from the China Exim Bank and $12 million from the Consolidated Fund – taxpayers’ money.

When the PPP administration took office in August 2020, Minister Edghill had stated that they were not satisfied with the work that was done by the contractor and as such, had negotiated and gotten CHEC to do additional works at the airport at no cost to Guyana. It was only recently that CHEC completed the works on the airport. Notably, while the contract cost with the Chinese contractor remains at US$150M, the government has undertaken several multi-million upgrades to the airport.

Some of the projects entail a contract worth over $513.7 million which was awarded to Kallco Guyana Inc, in August 2021 for the construction of an office building to conference room, offices for the airlines and other supporting agencies, and a duty-free bond.

At that same contract signing, a contract valued over $38.3 million was inked with Colin Talbot Contracting Services to conduct repairs to the international apron and build a taxiway. Additionally, Kalitech Inc. signed another contract worth $25.9 million for the construction of a new office building for CJIA’s personnel.

Following that, a contract to the tune of $890 million was awarded to Avinash Contracting & Scrap Metal Inc. for the construction of the new administration building in October 2022. Notably, another $45 million covered the design and supervision of the new administration building.

In November last year, a $703 million contract was awarded to Avinash Construction and Scrap Metal Inc. to renovate the airport’s apron. Late last year too, another contract worth $81 million was awarded to &S General Contractors Inc to repair the airport’s baggage make-up area.

This year with $1.1 billion budgetary allocation for the ongoing modernisation of the CJIA, it was stated in the budget estimates that the money will be spent on the apron, taxiways and airline offices for the airport.

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Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Ministry of Public Works, newly renovated, seeking contractors, taxiway Charlie

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