The local operations of MACORP at Providence on the East Coast Demerara have “chipped” in to support the current flood alleviation effort with a loan of five 320DL Caterpillar excavators to some of the agencies that are part of the national response to the present flooding occasioned by heavy seasonal rains.
MACORP Chief Executive Officer Jorge Medina told Stabroek Business earlier this week that three of the excavators had been loaned to the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) and one each to the Georgetown City Council and the Ministry of Public Works. Medina said that the equipment which represents capital investment of more than $200M had been loaned to the various agencies for a three-month period. Under the loan agreement the receiving parties are responsible for providing trained personnel and fuel to operate the excavators and for removing and returning. MACORP will be responsible for maintenance and, where necessary, repairs to the excavators.
MACORP Sales Man-ager Lyndon Bentick told Stabroek Business that the agencies to which the equipment had been loaned were familiar with their operation since those agencies had purchased similar equipment in the past. “These are hydraulic excavators and are particularly effective for clearing blockages, digging drains and leveling dams. He said that the excavator had proved particularly effective at clearing blocked outfalls allowing water to be drained off the land. During the 2005 floods government purchased ten pieces of similar equipment from MACORP, a further two last year and an additional one this year. “Given the nature of the challenges associated with responding to flooding, equipment of this type is never really enough. You can always use more,” Bentick said.
Meanwhile Medina told Stabroek Business that MACORP’s gesture was part of the company’s culture of corporate social responsibility and that it had been aimed at alleviating the impact of flooding on people in low-lying communities. Medina said that the loan of the excavators was not the first socially responsible gesture on its part since it had been associated with providing support for the Guyana Relief Council and other deserving charitable causes. MACORP holds the sole distributorship for new Caterpillar equipment in Guyana and is currently celebrating its 15th year of operations here.
